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Sasear ^emi=Centenntal ibtvits 

ELIZABETHAN TRANSLATIONS FROM THE ITAL- 
IAN. By Mary Augusta Scott, Ph.D. (A. B. Vas- 
sar, 1876), Professor of English Literature in Smith 

College. 

SOCIAL STUDIES IN ENGLISH LITERATURE. 
By Laura J. Wylie, Ph.D. (A.B. Vassar, 1877), Pro- 
fessor of English in Vassar College. 

THE LEARNED LADY IN THE EIGHTEENTH 
CENTURY. By Mvra Reynolds, Ph.D. (A.B. Vas- 
sar, 1880), Professor of English Literature in Chicago 
University. [/« preparation .~\ 

THE CUSTOM OF DRAMATIC ENTERTAINMENT IN 
SHAKESPEARE'S PLAYS. By Orik J. Hatcher, 
Ph.D. (A.B. Vassar, 1888), Formerly Associate Pro- 
fessor of Comparative Literature in Bryn Mawr Col- 
lege. \_In preparation.'^ 

INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF VARIABLE 
STARS. By Caroline E. Furness, Ph.D. (A.B. Vas- 
sar, iSgi), Professor of Astronomy in Vassar College. 

MOVEMENT AND MENTAL IMAGERY. By Mar- 
garet Floy Washburn, Ph.D. (A.B. Vassar, 1891), 
Professor of Psychology in Vassar College. \_In prep- 
aration^ 

BRISSOT DE WARVILLE : A STUDY IN THE HIS- 
TORY OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION. By Eloise 
Ellkrv, Ph.D. (A.B. Vassar, 1897), Associate Profes- 
sor of History in Vassar College. 

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 
Boston and New York 



BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 



Va^^At ^emi-€entennial M>mt^ 

BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

A STUDY IN THE HISTORY OF 
THE FRENCH REVOLUTION 



BY 

ELOISE ELLERY, Ph.D. 

Associate Professor of History in Vassar College 




BOSTON AND NEW YORK 

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 

dbc lRitier?JDe presj* CambtiOoe 

1915 



^G 






COPYRIGHT, 1915, BY ELOISE ELLERY 
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 

Published October iqis 



NOV 3 1915 

©CI.A414380 



PUBLISHED IN HONOR OF THE 

FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY 

OF THE 

FOUNDING OF VASSAR COLLEGE 

1865-1915 



TO 
F. M. E. AND M. A. A. E. 



PREFACE 

The main sources for the study of Brissot's life are his own 
works, including his early writings, his political pamphlets, his 
memoirs in the new and critical edition of M. Claude Perroud, 
his correspondence, also edited by M. Perroud, and especially 
the newspaper of which he was the editor, the Patriote Fran- 
gais. Other material of value is contained in the publications 
of the Societe des Amis des Noirs, in the pamphlets and news- 
papers of Brissot's opponents, in letters and reports found 
among the correspondence between the French and English 
Foreign Offices, preserved at the Ministere des Affaires Etran- 
geres at Paris, in judicial and police reports at the Archives Na- 
tionales; and finally in the Craigie Papers among the Antiqua- 
rian Society collections at Worcester, Massachusetts, and the 
Scioto Papers in the collections of the New York Historical 
Society. 

The writer desires to make grateful acknowledgment to 
the librarians and archivists of the various libraries where her 
investigation has been carried on, both in this country and 
abroad, for their help and unfailing courtesy. She is, moreover, 
especially indebted, to Professor H. Morse Stephens, of the 
University of California, for assistance in the initial stages of 
her work ; to the late Professor Ralph C. H. Catterall, of Cornell 
University, for untiring criticism and counsel; to her friend 
and colleague. Assistant Professor C. Mildred Thompson, for 
generous help in proof-reading, and above all to the inspiration 
and encouragement of Professor Lucy M. Salmon of Vassar 
College. 

E. E. 

Vassar College, 
September, 1915. 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER I 

Introduction • 

The importance of Brissot. 

Reasons why his life has never been written. 

The diversity of his activities. 

His connection with a defeated party. 
Reasons why his life should be written. 

New conception concerning the Girondins. 

Brissot — a typical Girondin. 

CHAPTER II 

Bri3sot's Early Life 

Brissot' s birth and family. 

Limitations of his early environment. 

Wide interests, large ambitions, and spiritual revolt. 

Entrance on a legal career and removal to Paris. 

Abandonment of a legal for a literary career. 

Difficulties of the beginner. 

First opening for journalistic work with Swinton at Boulogne. 

Failure, return to Paris, entrance to literary and scientific circles. 

Writings in the interest of reform. 

Engagement to Felicite Dupont. 

Journey to Switzerland and first contact with active revolu- 
tionists. 

Establishment of the Lycee at London. 

English friends and unfortunate acquaintances. 

Failure of the Lye^e, return to Paris and imprisonment in the 
Bastille for alleged libel. 

Collaboration with Clavi^re and Mirabeau. 

Schemes for reform work for the Duke of Chartres. 

Establishment of the Amis des Noirs. 

Journey to America. 

Return to France at the beginning of the Revolution. 



xii CONTENTS 

CHAPTER III 

Brissot as Author and Journalist before the Revolution 41 

Influence of Voltaire on Brissot. 

Influence of Rousseau. 

Influence of the humanitarian spirit of the age. 

Influence of the physiocrats. 

Influence of the institutions of the United States. 

His criticism of proposed reforms. 

His efforts to extend information and to educate public opinion. 

His difficulties with the censorship of the press. 

The reception accorded to his works. 

His faults as a critic. 

The permanent value of his works — their revelation of his 

character. 
Qualities seen in his works: earnestness, enthusiasm, ambition, 

and optimism. 

CHAPTER IV 

Brissot's Travels in the United States 59 

Brissot's early interest in the United States. 

His defense of Chastellux's book. 

The Gallo-American Society. 

His book, De la France et des Etats-Unis. 

His plans for the journey to America. 

Their final success. 

His motives. 

His qualifications as an observer. 

The voyage across the ocean. 

Boston and its vicinity. 

His connection with the speculation in the American debt. 

His account of the simplicity and democracy of life. 

His account of Franklin. 

His account of Washington. 

His account of the Quakers. 

His account of the work for the negroes. 

His interest in the public debt. 

His interest in western settlement. 

Return to France. 

Connection with the land companies. 

Subsequent influence of his journey to America. 



CONTENTS xui 

CHAPTER V 

Brissot's Career as a Municipal Politician during the 
Constituent Assembly 91 

Brissot's ideas concerning the organization and functions of the 

States-General. 
His part in the electoral campaign; failure to secure election 

throws him into municipal assembly. 
Questions at issue: 

Internal organization of the city government. 

Relation to the authority of the national government. 

Size of the municipality. 

Relation of the municipality to the policy of the National 

Assembly. 
Rights of the people. 
His interest in the development of provincial government. 
His part in the Comite des Recherches. 

CHAPTER VI 

Brissot's Career during the Constituent Assembly, As 
A Journalist — "Le Pateiote FRANgAis" 113 

Part I. His Struggles to establish a Newspaper and his 
Attitude on Legislation. 

Brissot's early journalistic experience. 

DiflSculties in establishing the Patriate Franqais, his struggles 

with the censorship. 
The policy of thte Patriate Frangais. 
Its form and contents. 
Its style. 

Brissot's collaboration in the Chronique de Mois. 
His collaborators in the Patriate Franqais. 
His partner, the question of responsibility. 
Desmoulins's attack. 
Brissot's attitude toward the constitution; questions at issue. 

One chamber or two. 

The degree of independence of the legislative body. 

The veto. 

The right of declaring peace and war. 

The relation of the ministry to the Legislative Assembly. 

The democratic character of the constitution. 



xiv CONTENTS 

His attitude toward the judicial system. 

His attitude toward freedom of the press. 

Attacks made upon him. 

His attitude toward the administrative work of the Assembly. 

Foreign affairs. 

The Church. 

Sale of church lands. 

Financial affairs. 
His interest in economic matters. 
His use of the Patriate Frangais as an organ of the Amis des Noirs. 

CHAPTER Vn 

Brissot's Career during the Constituent Assembly. As 
A Journalist — "Le Patriote Francais" 156 

Part II. His Attitude toward Popular Movements and 
Public Opinion. 
Popular movements. 
The 4th of August. 
The 5th and 6th of October. 
The affair of Nancy. 
Popular societies as a means of instruction. 
Brissot's own connection with popular societies. 
His democracy in relation to women. 
His democracy in relation to socialistic tendencies and social 

customs. 
His republicanism. 

Pre-revolutionary utterances. 
Continued support of monarchy in theory, but hesitancy as to 

actual change. 
Attitude after June 21; connection with Republicanism. 
Return to a more moderate position. 
His part in the events leading to July 17. 

CHAPTER VIII 

Brissot as a Humanitarian — La SociETi: des Amis des 
Noirs 182 

Brissot's incentive — an English organization against the slave 

trade. 
Mirabeau's cooperation. 



CONTENTS XV 

The organization of the society. 

Its constitution. 

Its decline during Brissot's absence in America. 

Revival of interest on his return. 

Efforts to interest the government in the work of the society. 

Assistance of Clarkson. 

Attacks on the society. 

The question of the admission of deputies from the colonies to the 

States-General. 
The question of the status of the mulattoes in the colonies. 
The decree of March 8, 1790, against the mulattoes, and its 

results. 
The decree of October 12, 1790, against the mulattoes, and its 

results. 
The decree of May 15, 1791, in favor of the mulattoes, and its 

results. 
The decree of September 24, 1791, against the mulattoes, and its 

results. 
The question reopened in the Legislative Assembly. 
The final struggle. 

Results of the colonial policy of the Amis des Noirs. 
Charges brought against the society and against Brissot. 

CHAPTER IX 

Brissot as a Member of the Legislative Assembly . . 216 
Part I. His Election and his Relation to the War Question. 
Brissot's struggle for election; persistent attacks upon him, the 

accusations of Theveneau de Morande. 
His election; how received. 
His general position. 

His views on the organization of the Assembly. 
His election to the diplomatic committee. 
His attitude toward diplomacy. 
His attitude toward special questions : 

The Emigres. 

The princes who had protected the ^migria. 

Cardinal de Rohan. 
His position at the Jacobin Club. 
His attitude toward the war question. 

His relation to Narbonne. 

His contest with Robespierre. 



xvi CONTENTS 

Desmoulins's attack on Brissot. 

Division in the diplomatic committee. 

Brissot's attack on Delessart. 

Appointment of the Girondin ministry. 

Attempt to secure an alliance with England and Prussia. 

The declaration of war. 

Support given by the other Girondins to Brissot's war policy. 

Their motives in adopting this policy. 



CHAPTER X 

Brissot as a Member of the Legislative Assembly . . 258 
Part II. His Interests and Influence. 
Brissot's policy toward financial problems. 
His policy toward non-juring priests. 

The Girondin ministry, Brissot's influence on its composition. 
His influence over the policy of this ministry. 
Change in his attitude; inconsistencies. 
Attacks made upon him. 
His attack on the "Austrian committee." 
His defense of his alleged republicanism. 
His attitude toward the King's vetoes and the dismissal of the 

Girondin ministry. 
His attitude toward the events of the 20th of June. 
His vacillating attitude from June 20 to August 10. 
His position after August 10, and as a member of the Commit- 
tee of Twenty-one. 

Action toward Lafayette. 

Address to foreign powers. 

Radical legislation. 

Struggles with the Commune. 

Accusations against him. 
His relation to the massacres of September. 
Siunmary of his policy during the Legislative Assembly. 

CHAPTER XI 
Brissot and the Convention 303 

Brissot's election. 

The abolition of royalty. 



CONTENTS xvii 

Quarrel with the Mountain. 

Question of the ministry. 

Question of the departmental guard. 
Brissot's expulsion from the Jacobin Club. 
His attitude toward the revolutionary propaganda. 
His attitude toward the relations of France to Geneva and to the 

Swiss cantons. 
His attitude toward Genet's expedition to Spanish America. 
Question as to his attitude toward foreign war. 

His own contention that he was opposed to it. 

His attempt at alliance with England. 

His alleged motive for appeal to the people at the king's trial. 

His speech of January 14 in favor of war. 

His speech against the execution of the king on the groimd that 
it would cause war. 

His attitude in the king's trial. 
Brissot's interest in social equality. 

Revival of the quarrel between the Girondins and the Mountain. 
Attacks on Brissot. 

His withdrawal from active control of the Patriote Frangais. 
The popular movement of March 9. 
Danton's efiForts at reconciliation. 
The desertion of Dumouriez and the final struggle. 
Desmoulins's attack — Histoire des Brissotins. 
Brissot's address to his Commettans. 
The expulsion of the Girondins from the Convention. 

Beissot and Federalism. 
Meaning of the word. 

Accusations of federalism and alleged proof. 
Accusations against Brissot. 
His defense. 

The defense of the Girondins as a whole. 
Origin of the change. 
Estimate of the value of the defense. 

CHAPTER XII 

Arrest, Trial, and Death 351 

The situation of the Girondins in the crisis of May 31 to June 2, 

1793. 
Brissot's flight to Versailles. 
His efforts in company with Souque to seek refuge at Chartres. 



xviii CONTENTS 

His wanderings to Moulins. 

His arrest at Moulins. 

The perplexities of the authorities of Moulins. 

His confession of his identity. 

The decision to send him to Paris. 

Accusations as to his conduct while at Moulins. 

His arrival at Paris. 

Report of Saint-Just. 

Brissot's answer. 

The writing of his memoirs. 

Appeals to the Convention. 

Amar's indictment. 

The answer prepared by Brissot. 

The preliminary examination. 

The trial. 

The verdict. 

The execution. 

CHAPTER Xm 

Brissot's Family Life 387 

Brissot's first acquaintance with Felicite Dupont. 
Their engagement, a period of happy comradeship. 
Their marriage. 
Their life in London. 
Financial troubles. 
The birth of their first child. 
Madame Brissot's literary productions. 
Birth of two other children. 

Difl5culties of the wife of a revolutionist — poverty and loneliness. 
Her character. 

Members of the Dupont family and Brissot's connection with 
them. 

Frangois Dupont. 

Madame Brissot's sisters. 

Madame Dupont. 
Brissot's tardy recognition of his debt to his family. 
Madame Brissot's arrest and imprisonment. 
Her petitions for indemnification. 
Her subsequent life and struggles. 
The career of her children. 
Her death. 



CONTENTS xix 

CHAPTER XIV 

Brissot's General Policy and Character 412 

His policy in regard to democracy, liberty and sovereignty of the 

people. 
His patriotism, cosmopolitan character. 
How far was he a typical Girondin? 
How far was he a leader of the Girondins? 
What was his character.' Diverse opinions. 
How far did he possess fitness for leadership? 
Why, in spite of conspicuous faults, did he succeed so well? 

Appendix 429 

A. Letters by and to Brissot. 

B. List of members of the SocietS des Amis des Noirs. 

C. Accusation against Brissot in connection with the colonies. 

D. Brissot's election to the Legislative Assembly. ' 

E. Letter relating to connection of Brissot with war with England. 

Bibliography 453 

Index 509 



BEISSOT DE WAEVILLE 

CHAPTER I 

INTRODUCTION 

The life of Brissot has never been written. Considering the 
importance of the role which he played in the drama of the 
Revolution, this absence of a biography seems strange. At 
the beginning of the Revolution he already had considerable 
reputation as a writer, philanthropist, and traveler; he took a 
prominent part in reorganizing the city government of Paris; 
as founder of the ^1 mis des Noirs he had a large share in shaping 
the colonial policy of the successive assemblies; he established 
one of the most influential newspapers of the period, and used 
it constantly to hold up American example to France; he, prob- 
ably more than any one individual, was responsible for bringing 
on that foreign war which ended only with the fall of Napoleon; 
he was known as the leader of the Girondins, and indeed gave 
his name to a whole section of the party; and, when that party 
fell, he was brought to a trial known as that of "Brissot and his 
accomplices." A mati of such prominence it might be supposed 
would be one of the first subjects of biographical study. That 
such has not been the case is accounted for by two reasons, 
which, while explaining why his life has not been written, at 
the same time suggest why it should be. 

In the first place, the very diversity of his activities has 
made his career appear to lack unity and therefore interest. 
But though his activities were diverse, they all centered, to a 
degree unusual even among his contemporaries, upon a firm 
belief in the principles of liberty, equality, and the sovereignty 
of the people. Of these principles Brissot was one of the earliest 
and most ardent advocates, and in the external events which 



2 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

turned those principles from theory into practice and trans- 
formed the bourgeois and limited monarchy into the demo- 
cratic republic, he was one of the most active participants. His 
early life was a struggle against despotism; his early writings 
are permeated with revolutionary doctrines; his travels in the 
United States were dictated by a desire to see such doctrines 
in active operation; his part in building up a new city govern- 
ment for Paris was an effort to apply these doctrines to local 
government; his founding of the Amis des Noirs witnessed his 
zeal for liberty and equality for one particular class of the un- 
free and the inferior; finally, through his paper, the Patrioie 
Frangais, he constantly protested against the inequality recog- 
nized by the limited suffrage, and, while grudgingly accepting 
the constitutional monarchy, preached republicanism as a 
theory and later upheld it in practice. In the legislature under 
the monarchy, to which in spite of his republicanism he sought 
election, he used all his influence to bring on foreign war, on 
the ground that only by war could the counter-revolutionists 
at home and abroad be defeated and liberty be preserved. Al- 
though not a leader in the final establishment of the republic 
he joyfully accepted the result, claimed a share in the credit, 
and was elected to the Convention, where, by preaching the 
extension of the principles of the Revolution beyond the bor- 
ders of France, he had a considerable share in involving 
France in a general European war. 

The failure of the armies of France in that war soon led to 
the overthrow of the Girondins, and he fell with them in their 
defeat in the Convention. That he belonged to the defeated 
party is a second reason for the absence of a study of his life. 
As the Girondins passed from the scene at the beginning of the 
most dramatic phase of the Revolution, — among the first vic- 
tims of the Terror, — they have been objects of pity, but have 
aroused much less interest than their victorious opponents, the 
leaders of the party of the Mountain, Danton, Robespierre, 
and Marat. 

But this conception of the Girondins, as the last representa- 



INTRODUCTION 3 

lives of a disinterested love of country and of opposition to 
bloodshed, has been given up. It has been shown that among 
the Girondins, as well as among the members of the Mountain, 
there were both idealism and selfish ambition; that the Giron- 
dins, after the overthrow of the king, sought to seize for them- 
selves the power that had been wrested from the king by others ; 
that they appealed to the provinces not against the principles, 
but against the power of the Mountain — an appeal which 
brought against them the accusation of federalism ; that they, 
as well as the Mountain, forged the instruments of the Terror, 
but that they lacked practical ability to suppress internal dis- 
sension within their group and to control the situation which 
they themselves, by their instigation of foreign war, had had a 
large share in bringing about. Of this group Brissot is one of 
the most important because he is one of the most typical. He 
showed both the lofty idealism and the ambition and weak- 
ness of the Girondins. He was tremendously earnest in work- 
ing for the principles of the Revolution, and he was also ex- 
tremely anxious to be one of the agents through which they 
were to be put into operation; at one and the same time he 
upheld monarchy and made monarchy impossible. But when 
the democratic republic, which had long been his ideal, was 
finally established, he did not see that the war which he had 
furthered in order to maintain democracy and republicanism, 
and to extend them ^o other lands, demanded strong, vigorous 
measures. And thus he ultimately encountered defeat because 
of that inability to meet changing conditions — that lack of 
practical sense which was characteristic of the Girondins in 
general. 

A study of his varied career as humanitarian, journaHst, and 
political leader ought, therefore, to contribute to a better un- 
derstanding both of the policy of the Girondins in the Revolu- 
tion and also of the Revolution as a whole. 



CHAPTER II 

brissot's early life 

Like many of his fellow revolutionists, Brissot was of humble 
origin, being the son of a restaurant keeper. He was born at 
Chartres, in the parish of Saint-Saturnin, in a house on what 
was then the rue de la Boucherie, number 16,^ January 15,^ 
1754, and the same day was baptized Jacques Pierre.^ The 
story of his childhood and youth is of significance in that it 
throws light on his later career, while the personal characteris- 
tics and external experiences and limitations of his early life 
explain Brissot the revolutionist.'* 

The most striking facts about his childhood, as he himself 
tells of it, were his mother's efforts to secure for him a good edu- 
cation and his almost abnormal love of study. In this effort 
to obtain for her sons opportunities for study, Madame Brissot 
found herself opposed by her husband, who did not favor any- 
thing like a liberal education for his children. His attitude was 
not to be wondered at, perhaps, in view of the fact that there 
were seven of them to be provided for,* but according to Brissot 

1 An article in the Intermediaire des chercheurs of July 30, 1898, vol. n, in 
which it was asserted that Brissot was born at number 7 rue des Vietix-Capu- 
chins, led to an investigation of the subject by the Societe archeologique d'Eure- 
et-Loir. It was shown that this statement was a mistake, but that the real 
place of his birth was that given above, number 16 rue de la Boucherie, now rue 
du Cygne, number 6. 

' See the record of Brissot's baptism given in Vatel, Charlotte Corday et les 
Girondins, ii, 242. 

' Not Jean Pierre, as given in the act of accusation before the revolutionary 
tribunal. The mistake must have been of earUer date, however, as Camille 
Desmoulins' pamphlet published in February, 1792, is entitled "Jean Pierre 
Brissot demasque." 

* Practically the only source of information on Brissot's early life is his own 
memoirs. As far as possible his statements have been verified by other author- 
ity, but much still remains uncorroborated. 

* Brissot {M&moires, ed. par Perroud, i, 25) says that he was the third child 



EARLY LIFE 5 

it was due to a narrow-minded fear that they might look down 
upon him with scorn if they were too well educated. Brissot's 
mother, however, was more ambitious. Not satisfied with the 
meager opportunities which Brissot had had in the little dame 
school to which he had been sent, she besought his father early 
and late till she finally obtained a reluctant consent to further 
schooling for her sons.^ 

Brissot was accordingly taken from this dame school and, in 
company with an elder brother, entrusted to an uncle, a priest 
in a neighboring town, to be prepared for a higher school. On 
the death of his uncle, three months later, he went back to 
Chartres to finish his preparation. He now began the study of 
Latin with the master of a boarding-school, and the following 
year, at the age of eight, he entered the college at Chartres, 
where he spent the next seven years of his life.^ Here he re- 
ceived the usual classical training of the time, consisting of 
rhetoric, logic, Latin, and Greek. 

As a consequence of the personal interest of one of his teach- 
ers, he devoted especial attention to Latin. ^ So eager was he to 
excel that he used to beg a candle from his sister when she went 
to mass at four in the morning, and with the aid of a dark lan- 
tern to conceal the light, that his father should not know what 
he was up to, he would pore over his Latin, quite as much a 
devotee to his books as his sister to her religion. In after life, 
when he became imbued with Rousseauism, he was wont to 
criticize the rigidity of the system by which he was taught. 
Although it did much to train the memory, it was not calcu- 

and that there were four younger than he. Perroud (Brissot, Correspondance et 
Papiers, Notice, viii-x) says there were sixteen. In any case only seven hved 
beyond infancy. For details as to the career of those seven see, in addition to 
Perroud, an article by A. H. Gibon in the Journal des Chartres, September 30, 
1899, quoted entire in the Proces-verbaux de la Soci^tS arcMologique d'Eure-et- 
Loir, X, 121-23. 

1 Memoires, i, 28-29. 

^ Ibid., I, 32-34. Brissot speaks of this school as a college. But the so- 
called colleges of that time do not correspond at all to our colleges. They were 
scarcely of as high a grade as the preparatory schools of to-day. 

» Ibid., I, 33. 



6 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

lated to inspire originality nor to develop the individuality of 
the student. Such evidences of spontaneity as he did show, far 
from being encouraged, were, he asserted, actually repressed. 
He declares that even as a child he had an uncomfortable sense 
of being cramped by a system which did not fit him, and a 
vague longing for better opportunities of seK-expression.^ 

But the prevailing system of education at least gave him the 
habit of work and a well-trained memory. He showed an un- 
usual fondness for study and seems to have been successful in 
all his classes. 2 His imagination, moreover, found satisfaction 
and stimulus in the contents of the library which one of his 
teachers kindly placed at his disposal. Here was a perfect mine 
of delight, and he fell upon it with avidity. " While reading the 
history of China," he wrote in his memoirs, "I was a conquer- 
ing Tartar; when reading Plutarch, I was eager to be like Pho- 
cion. The hut of Philocles, pictured with all the charm of 
Fenelon, appeared to me more desirable than all the thrones of 
the world. . . . The reading of travels changed the course of my 
ideas; I became a traveler. I literally devoured the voyages of 
Magellan, of Anson, of Drake, and of Kempfer." ' All in all, 
his school days were happy. When he returned home, exulting 
in his little triumphs, he was hurt by his father's coldness and 
lack of sympathy; but he found compensation for this disap- 
pointment in his mother's unfailing pride in his achievements 
and in her keen appreciation and constant encouragement. 

At the age of fifteen he left the college and had to choose a 
vocation. After some hesitation he decided on the legal profes- 
sion, partly because he had some inclination for the law, but 
chiefly, it must be confessed, because that career seemed to be 
the only one open to him. Having once made up his mind, he 
sought the best lawyer of Chartres, M. Horeau, began his 
studies under his direction, and threw himself, heart and soul, 

^ Memoir es, i, 35. 

^ Petion, Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel, Charlotte Corday et les Girondins, ii, 220. 
These notes by Petion are evidently based on information derived from Brissot 
personally and therefore have not the value of an independent source. 

^ Memoires, i, 42-^3. 



EARLY LIFE 7 

into the work. He was an indefatigable student in all branches 
of the subject, — of canon, as well as of criminal and civil law. 
He soon felt sufficiently sure of his knowledge to venture to 
write a short treatise on canon law under the title of Rome 
demasque, ou Observations sur le droit canonique.^ This he fol- 
lowed by an essay on theft and property, in which he argued 
that in a state of nature there was no such thing as theft, — 
a work which subsequently brought upon him much criticism. ^ 

Nor were his interests confined to legal matters. After the 
fashion of the time, he took all knowledge for his province. 
M. Horeau's son possessed a library containing some works on 
physics; Brissot immediately began to read on that subject. 
Two Englishmen happened to be stopping at Chartres; he 
seized the opportunity to take lessons in English.^ A friend ad- 
vised him to study Italian; he not only followed the advice, 
but went on to the study of Spanish and Portuguese. And 
finally, what was very unusual for a Frenchman of the eight- 
eenth century, he even aspired to learn German.^ According to 
Petion he was a veritable prodigy in learning foreign languages.^ 
At all events, he had unusual aptitude for such studies and made 
considerable progress in a short time. He even planned a trea- 
tise on the Theorie des langues de V Europe et surtout de la langue 
frangaise, but the appearance of Gebelin's learned work on this 
subject prevented, perhaps fortunately, its publication.^ 

Still he was not a recluse. He enjoyed an occasional game of 
billiards, took some part in social life, and made various friends; 
among them. Blot,' to whom he remained deeply attached to 
the day of his death. About this time the idea of marriage be- 
gan to present itself to him in a form quite in accordance with 

' Memoires, i, 46-48. » See p. 266. 

^ Memoires, i, 48. Petion, in his Notice sur Brissot, implies that Brissot car- 
ried on his studies without assistance. Vatel, ii, 221. 

^ Memoires, i, 53-54. ^ Notice in Vatel, ii, 221. ^ MSmoires, i, 55-57. 

' Blot, Pierre Charles, began his career as an ecclesiastic, gave up the Church, 
married, entered the financial administration of the state at Lyons, and 
became one of the leading revolutionists of that city. He came to be closely 
associated with the Rolands and with Brissot. See p. 121. 



8 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

his intellectual tastes. "I wanted a wife," he writes, "who, 
with external attractions, would combine good judgment and 
a philosophical spirit; who would prefer not the vain pleasures 
of the world, but those of solitude; who would be a good mother 
and a good wife; but who, at the same time, would be suffi- 
ciently well educated to be my friend, my second self, the com- 
panion of my studies." For so rare a partner he searched in 
vain, till his friend Blot, who shared his views, came to the res- 
cue and told him of some one who, he assured Brissot, had all 
these qualifications which he had enumerated, and, moreover, 
a very strong character besides. But apparently before Brissot 
could even make her acquaintance she gave a peculiar evidence 
of her strength of character by killing herself.^ Much disheart- 
ened, and perhaps alarmed by such possibilities, Brissot seems 
to have abandoned the search for a wife and flung himself back 
into his studies. 

If his intellectual achievements and interests were abnormal, 
his religious experience was a more common one. Like many 
of his contemporaries, he began with extreme devotion to the 
Roman Catholic Church, passed through a severe struggle, and 
ended in deism. His early training was under the direction of 
priests and in an atmosphere of intense religiousness. He at- 
tended mass every day, piously confessed his faults, and dis- 
played all the ardor of a zealous neophyte. In the simplicity 
of his faith he attributed all his success to his devotion to the 
Virgin, and on the eve of the distribution of prizes, his Ave 
Marias were very numerous.^ 

Out of this comfortable belief he was shaken by the sneers 
and ridicule of one of his schoolmates, Guillard,^ who, as it hap- 
pened, was not only exceptionally clever, but had enjoyed 
unusual advantages at home. He was accordingly much looked 
up to and his opinion had great weight with Brissot. The latter 
now began to read for himself Guillard's favorite authors, such 
as Rousseau, Voltaire, and Diderot. La profession de foi du 

1 Memoires, i, 43-44, 62-63. ^ Ibid., i, 37. 

^ Afterward a poet of some note. See p. 11. 



EARLY LIFE 9 

vicaire Savoyard, to quote his own words, first caused the scales 
to fall from his eyes ; but it was only after careful study of all 
the books within his reach that he definitely abandoned Chris- 
tianity, and it was many years before he could entirely get rid 
of "the prejudices which had driven long, deep roots into his 
soul." 1 

Once during this struggle he was tempted to become a monk, 
not at all on account of any spiritual longing for peace, but be- 
cause he craved the opportunity which the cloister afforded for 
a life of study. A mere subsistence and books were all he 
needed to be happy. From any such intention he was dissuaded 
by a certain Benedictine monk, who with much frankness pic- 
tured to him the restrictions of the monastic life in anything 
but glowing colors. This episode confirmed him in his opposi- 
tion to Christianity. He even wrote a savage attack on the 
Christian religion, entitled Lettres philosophiques sur la vie et 
les ecrits de Saint Paul? The result of this experience was that 
he became a believer in deism and continued in that faith to the 
end of his days. 

His struggle was all the harder because he had to fortify him- 
self against the inevitable opposition of his family. He could 
not bear the thought of the strife that was sure to come, and for 
a long time concealed his changed views. For the sake of his 
sister he even continued to partake of the eucharist after he 
had lost all faith in its efficacy. It was the spiritual separation 
from his mother, however, which was hardest to endure. She 
had made possible his education, sympathized with him in his 
struggles, and stood between him and his unsympathetic father. 
But the break could not be avoided and was a tragedy for both 
sides — for Brissot because he was torn between sorrow for hav- 
ing wounded his family and irritation at what seemed to him 
the most narrow-minded dogmatism; and for his family because 

* MSmoires, i, 38. 

^ Of the trenchant and dogmatic tone of this work he was afterward much 
ashamed. At the time it seems to have given him a reputation for cutting sar- 
casm which, to his regret, made the young women of his acquaintance rather 
afraid of him. {MSmoires, i, 61-62.) 



10 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

they believed him lost to all eternity. As he himself well ex- 
pressed it, he and his family had ceased to speak a common 
language.^ 

This religious difficulty made his home life unhappy and in 
consequence hastened his departure from Chartres. He suf- 
fered, too, from want of intellectual companionship. In the 
words of a modern writer, he felt himself cut off equally from 
the blessings of society and of solitude, and longed for life either 
in the country or in a large city. The chief reason, however, for 
his leaving Chartres was the consuming ambition which was 
one of his most marked characteristics. While still in school his 
plans for himself had gone beyond anything his native town had 
to offer; and when a kindly neighbor, thinking to flatter the 
boy, suggested that some day he would be like M. Janvier, one 
of the best lawyers of the place, he was actually displeased at 
the comparison, 2 and the more he studied the more Chartres 
seemed to him insupportable. His aspiration was all for a ca- 
reer in Paris, but it was only after four years of the study of law 
in Chartres that an opening presented itself. The opportunity 
came through a Paris lawyer, a M. Nolleau, who happened to 
be stopping at Chartres. On hearing of his arrival, Brissot 
seized the chance, wrote to him at once asking for a position, 
and accompanied the application with a copy of one of his legal 
essays. This production, according to Brissot's own account, 
happened to strike the fancy of M. Nolleau, who offered him 
the place of first clerk. ^ 

While still living at Chartres he had added to his name " de 
Warville," the anglicized form of Ouarville, a little village 
where his father owned some property.^ For this addition to his 
name he was afterwards much criticized, on the ground that it 

1 Memoires, i, 28-39. ^ /^-^f ^ j^ 42 3 jj^^i^ ^ gg^ 55 

* Brissot, Reponse d, tous les lihellistes, 5. The account which he there gives 
is incorporated by Montrol in his edition of Brissot's memoirs, a fact to which 
M. Perroud, in his edition, calls attention, (i, 53.) A writer in the IntermSdi- 
aire des chercheurs et curieux for January 25, 1876, says : Warville n'est en effet 
que la corruption euphonique du mot Warvick \sic\ laisse en France par Richard 
Nevil, comte de Warvick. 



EARLY LIFE 11 

betokened an unseemly hankering after aristocratic distinc- 
tions. Whether this criticism was justified or not, he continued 
to sign himself "Brissot de Warville," and by that name has 
long been known. ^ 

It was in 1774 that he left Chartres.^ The rest of his life, with 
brief intermissions, was to be spent in Paris. The occupations 
in which he engaged, and the connections which he made, both 
worked toward the development of the future revolutionist. 
He was now twenty years of age, abounding in hope and enthu- 
siasm, and any regret which he might have felt at leaving Char- 
tres was quite overbalanced by his delight at the prospect of life 
in the city which, with a not too modest opinion of his own 
ability, he regarded " as the center of science and a stage worthy 
of his efforts."^ 

Full of confidence in himself, he ventured, on the basis of a 
short acquaintance with the theater, to prepare a plan for a 
theater which should make a special business of presenting 
plays in English, Italian, Spanish, and German; and what was 
more, he had the temerity to seek out Linguet, the distin- 
guished publicist, and present to him his plan.* Although 
warned by Linguet against a literary career, Brissot refused to 
be dissuaded, and influenced by the glowing pictures painted by 
his young friend, the poet Guillard,^ of the delights of the life of 
a man of letters, he soon threw in his fortunes with the latter, 
and with a light heart started in pursuit of fame and fortune 
as a writer.^ In order to prepare himself for his profession he 
devoted his entire time to study. Even on Sundays and holi- 
days he would not leave his Locke, his Montesquieu, and his 
Montaigne,^ and when Guillard would come in from his mid- 

1 See pp. 220-21. 

2 Brissot does not give the date of his arrival, but says he found the city in 
mourning for Louis XV. {Memoires, i, 67.) As Louis died on the 10th of May, 
1774, and the period of mourning for the king was three months, this would fix 
the date of Brissot's arrival some time between May 10 and August 10, 1774. 
(Franklin, La Vie privee d'autrefois, les magasins des nouveautes, iii, 131-32.) 

' Memoires, i, 66. '' Ibid., i, 82. ^ gp^ p g. 

8 MSmaires, i, 102-03. '' Petion, Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel, ii, 222. 



12 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

night suppers he would find Brissot still poring over his Greek 
dictionary. Meanwhile he had to live, and he was not long in 
discovering that the path of a young man dependent on his pen 
for support was no easy one. He was obliged to ask his mother 
for money, but the amount which she could send him was not 
sufficient for his needs; the little pamphlets on matters of the 
day, from which he expected to make some money, were indeed 
accepted by a publisher, but the publisher failed to pay him 
anything for them; a spiteful satire, Le Pot pourri, which, in his 
disgust with the chicanery of the law, he wrote in collaboration 
with Guillard, brought on him the threat of a lettre de cachet, 
on account of some aspersions which it contained on the wife of 
a certain lawyer.^ And to crown his misfortunes, just as he was 
threatened with the lettre de cachet, he was taken ill with fever, 
aggravated, if not brought on, by a combination of overwork, 
the excessive use of punch, and insufficient nourishment. Ill as 
he was, he was obliged to flee at once; and it was only after an 
illness of several months that he was sufficiently restored in 
health to return to Paris, weak in body and chastened in spirit. 

As nothing better offered, he went back to Guillard. It was 
the same struggle to make both ends meet, and they were often 
in distress. But it was harder for Brissot than for Guillard, for 
the latter was a favorite in literary circles and was frequently 
relieved of the necessity of paying for his meals by an invita- 
tion to dinner, while Brissot, neither so popular nor so well 
known, had to provide his own dinner and find consolation by 
flattering himseK, as he ate his bread and cheese alone, that he 
was above being a parasite.^ 

Meanwhile he was becoming more and more absorbed in 
plans for the reform of existing institutions. In the enormous 
scale of the works he undertook to write and in the audacious 
enterprise with which he brought them to the attention of dis- 
tinguished men, he showed the same undaunted courage and 
large ambition which he had already displayed in his work on 
canon law ^ and in his plans for a theater,* and which he after- 

1 Memoires, i, 104. " Ibid., i, 120. ^ ggg p. 7. * See p. 11. 



EARLY LIFE 13 

ward showed throughout the Revolution. In addition to a 
satirical attack on the English cabinet, entitled Testament 'poli- 
tique de VAngleterre, he planned a Theorie des his criminelles,^ 
and sketched the outline of a work to be called Pyrrhonisme 
universelle. The last he ventured to send to D'Alembert and 
was much hurt that D'Alembert gave him only compliments 
when he wanted advice and encouragement. Wishing to print 
the letter which D'Alembert had written him, and having lost 
the original, he had the audacity to submit a copy to him and 
to ask for corrections.^ 

Voltaire seemed to be the one man who inspired him with 
awe. He yearned to present the introduction to his work on 
the Theorie des lois criminelles to Voltaire, but after having 
been actually admitted to the house where Voltaire was a 
guest, his courage suddenly failed him and he quietly stole 
out. Ashamed of this performance, he tried again, this time 
armed with a letter to present, but again he turned and rushed 
down the steps. But as it happened, he ran against Madame 
Du Barry, who was just coming away from her one famous in- 
terview with Voltaire, and Brissot summoned up courage to 
address himself to her. She good-naturedly took pity on his 
timidity, and called the master of the house. Thus Brissot was 
able to give his letter directly into the hands of Voltaire's host. 
He was still more delighted to receive from Voltaire a flatter- 
ing reply, a part of which he inserted in the preface of his 
work.^ 

The plan for the Testament politique de VAngleterre did not 
promise so well at first, though in the end it brought him good 
fortune. Vergennes, to whom he sent the manuscript, was so 
afraid of irritating the English that he forbade its publication, 
but Brissot managed to get it printed surreptitiously, outside 
of France. A copy happened to fall into the hands of Swinton, 
the publisher, who, in his Courrier de VEurope, was making a 
specialty of English affairs. Being struck with Brissot's knowl- 

* See p. 45. ^ MSmoires, i, 121-23. 

' Ibid., I, 145-47; also Correspondance, 3. 



14 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

edge of the subject, he offered him a place on the French edi- 
tion of the paper, published at Boulogne.^ This was a godsend 
to Brissot personally. Moreover, he looked upon it as an oppor- 
tunity to better the character of the paper, — which, according 
to his own account, was sadly in need of improvement, — and 
thus to render a service to men of letters and to the cause of 
political liberty.^ Incidentally it would enable him to continue 
his scientific and political studies. But most of all it was his 
chance to break away from a kind of life for which his con- 
science had begun to trouble him. Having paid his debts with 
money which Swinton advanced, he settled up his affairs and 
set out in a state of blissful content for the scene of his new 
labors, as delighted to leave Paris as he had been four years 
before to arrive there. ^ 

Brissot was forever an optimist. Each new enterprise, each 
fresh start, was sure to be a success. The life at Boulogne, he 
was confident, was to give him the opportunities he had hitherto 
sought in vain. At first everything answered to his expecta- 
tions. He was pleased with the English household of Swdnton, in 
which he was received on familiar terms, enjoyed the society of 
various families to whom he was introduced, and was charmed 
with the country walks in the beautiful surroundings of Bou- 
logne and along the seashore. Besides all this, he was able to 
complete his work on the Theorie des his criminelles, a part of 
which he presented in competition for a prize offered by the 
Economic Society of Berne.* His main attention, of course, 
was given to the Courrier, and into his new work he threw him- 
self with enthusiasm, delighted to have a vehicle for the expres- 
sion of his ideas. But his good fortune suddenly changed. Ac- 
cording to his own account he expressed his ideas with too 
much freedom, and in consequence brought down upon the 
Courrier an order from the censor to confine itself to English 

^ Memoires, i, 137-40. ^ Reponse a tous les libellistes, 7. 

* Memoires, i, 139-40. See also Petion, Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel, ii, 226. 
Petion evidently confuses Brissot's subsequent connection with the Courrier 
at London with his work at Boulogne. 

* Mimoires, i, 154-64. 



EARLY LIFE 15 

news and to let French politics alone. His work being thus re- 
duced to mere mechanical tasks, he began to lose interest in it. 
At the same time Swinton, Brissot asserts, had become ab- 
sorbed in some new scheme for the development of which he 
needed to exercise greater economy. He accordingly sent word 
to Brissot from London, where he was staying for the moment, 
that he no longer needed his services, but he concealed the real 
motive and tried to soften the abrupt dismissal by inviting 
Brissot to visit him in his London home. In spite of his dis- 
charge, Brissot still had confidence in Swinton and accepted 
the invitation, thus closing this chapter of his career with a 
visit to England, — his first journey out of France.^ This con- 
fidence, however, seems to have been misplaced, for, with 
unpardonable simplicity, having left the settlement of their 
financial arrangements to Swinton, he found that Swinton had 
made the settlement very much to his own advantage. ^ This 
account, of course, rests on Brissot's own statement. It is 
quite possible there may have been another side to the story. 
However that may be, from a business and professional point 
of view his Boulogne experience had not been the success he had 
anticipated.^ It had, however, a lasting importance for him, 
aside from the experience with newspaper work, as it was at 
Boulogne that he made the acquaintance of the young woman 
who was afterwards to become his wife — Felicite Dupont. 

After a brief sojourn in London Brissot returned to Paris. 
"Thrown back into the whirlpool," to quote his own language, 
from which he had been so glad to escape, he had to find a way 
to make his living.^ While still at Boulogne he had appealed to 

1 Mimoires, i, 169-73. 2 Ibid., i, 173. 

^ How long he stayed at Boulogne, Brissot does not say. He apparently went 
there in the spring of 1778 (see letter addressed to him at the time he left Paris, 
by Voltaire, Memoires, i, 147, and Correspondance, 3) . According to Perroud 
(La Revolution Frangaise, xlvii, 127), he returned to Paris in the autumn of 
1780, but as he seems to have been in Paris when he was summoned by his 
father's last illness {Memoires, i, 180), and his father died December 24, 1779 
{Notice by Perroud in his Correspondance), his stay at Boulogne could have 
lasted not more than a year and a half. 

* MSmoires, i, 166-73. 



16 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

his father, but received only a chiUing response, written, Brissot 
was confident, under priestly influence, in which he spoke with 
pride of the first mass of another son, and made it uncomfort- 
ably plain to Brissot that he would give him help only on con- 
dition of his returning to the true fold.^ Brissot evidently had 
nothing to hope from that source. He then applied to Linguet. 
But Linguet had been obliged to leave France on account of his 
quarrels with the encyclopedists, and was not in prosperous 
circumstances. The only work which Linguet would give him 
was the making of an index for three or four volumes of his 
Annates. "^ He also secured some hack work on a Dictionnaire 
ecclesiastique de toute la France, but he seems never to have 
received a sou for it. 

In his discouragement and loneliness he began to think that 
it would be a comfortable consolation to have a wife to share his 
troubles. He had been greatly taken with Mademoiselle Du- 
pont, whose family he had come to know at Boulogne, but the 
knowledge that she was already engaged had been an effectual 
check to his ardor. His thoughts now turned to a daughter of 
Swinton, but Swinton, who had higher ambitions for his chil- 
dren, would have none of Brissot.^ 

The one offset to these failm*es and disappointments was the 
kindness of Mentelle, the geographer. This Brissot owed di- 
rectly to Madame Dupont, the mother of Felicite. She had 
spoken to Brissot of Mentelle as an old friend of the family, 
and when Brissot returned to Paris she recommended him to 
Mentelle. The latter responded most cordially, invited Brissot 
to his house, and introduced him to his friends.^ 

Just at this juncture he was called home by the last illness of 

1 Memoires, i, 173-74. 

* Ibid., I, 93. Brissot eventually lost faith in Linguet, partly because he mis- 
trusted that Linguet's kindness was not altogether disinterested and partly 
because of Linguet's quarrels with the encyclopedists. {Ibid,, i, 96-98.) 

3 Ihid., I, 177-78. 

* Ibid., I, 178. See also p. 388. The one thing which Brissot did not enjoy 
at Mentelle's house was the concerts which Mentelle occasionally provided 
for his guests. Brissot admits that he not only had no taste for music, but that 
it was actually disagreeable to him. 



EARLY LIFE 17 

his father. He was much touched, after their long estrange- 
ment, to receive his father's benediction,^ but the softening in- 
fluence of the occasion was marred for Brissot by the presence 
at the deathbed of the priests to whom Brissot felt that the 
estrangement was due. He felt, too, that he had further cause 
for indignation. His mother had become subject to violent 
attacks of insanity during which she imagined herself sur- 
rounded by horrible demons. This condition Brissot attributed, 
in part, to the influence of the priests, who had wrought upon 
her imagination with their pictures of the terrors of the next 
world, and this conviction only increased his cordial hatred of 
the Church. 2 

He now returned to Paris. Though he occasionally got into 
difficulties due, if his own account is to be believed, to a too 
great confidence in his fellow men, he was able to continue 
extensive studies and to work out schemes for reform, this time 
under pleasanter conditions and with happier results. The 
legacy of four thousand francs which he received from his 
father, small though it was, was of great help. The study of 
chemistry, anatomy, and physics, which he now took up for 
the first time, afforded him a fascinating field of investigation.^ 
Through Mentelle he secured the entree to the best literary and 
scientific circles; and his own scientific studies brought him 
into connection with men of note, among them Chambon "* and 
Marat. The investigations of the latter in physics had attracted 
his attention; and when Marat announced himself an apostle of 
liberty, Brissot was ready to become his friend. With the im- 
petuous zeal with which he always flung himself into any plan 
for the extension of knowledge, Brissot set to work to extend 
the reputation of Marat, both as a physicist and a physician, 
only to be met, according to Brissot's account, by ingratitude 

1 His father died December 24, 1779. See article by M. A. H. Gibon, ancien 
greffier de Chartres, in the Journal de Chartres, September 30, 1799, quoted en- 
tire in Proces verbaux de la SociitS arcMohgique d' Eure-et-Loir, x, 121-23. 
1901. 

2 Memoires, i, 181-82. 3 /^^^.^ j^ 181-88. 
* Chambon, afterward Mayor of Paris. 



18 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

and by demands for introductions which he felt he could not 
give.^ 

Brissot's interests were not confined, however, to matters 
scientific. Through Mentelle he was able to renew his acquaint- 
ance with Felicite Dupont. As her engagement was broken 
and there was now no obstacle to his suit, he lost no time in 
profiting by the circumstance, and they soon became engaged. 
Felicite was also interested in science, and they enjoyed a 
charming courtship while carrying on their studies together.^ 

He was most anxious to hasten his marriage, and as the small 
inheritance which he had received from his father would hardly 
enable him to support a family, he determined as a means of 
increasing his income to seek admission to the bar. He accord- 
ingly took up the study of law again. It was necessary to get 
certain degrees in the law school, but as that was a mere for- 
mality, he took the usual and shorter method of buying them, 
but he soon found insupportable the long novitiate through 
which he must pass before being admitted to full standing. 
Another cause was his lack of harmony with the lawyers of the 
Parlement of Paris, due, according to his own account, to the 
radical opinions he had expressed in his recent writings. He 
was disgusted, too, he declared, with the pedantry and formal- 
ism of the system. It is not unlikely, however, that indifferent 
success may have had something to do with his disgust. At all 
events, he threw up the whole business and went back to his 
scientific and philosophical studies. His practical experience 
only accentuated his interest in the theoretical side of the law 
and strengthened his conviction of the need of reform. During 
the three years of his second residence in Paris, he wrote much 
on this subject. He had already published, at the time of his 
admission to the bar, his Theorie des lois criminelles, and it was 
in part because of the ideas advanced therein that he did not 
receive a cordial welcome.^ The work, however, was warmly 

1 MSmoires, i, 196-213; also Correspondance, 35-38. 

^ MSmoires, i, 185. For the details of this charming companionship, see 
chap. xra. ' Ibid., i, 194-95. 



EARLY LIFE 19 

praised by various writers and brought him into pleasant, 
friendly relations with several prominent men. He also wrote 
two essays on the same general theme in competition for prizes 
offered by the Academy of Chalons-sur-Marne on the specific 
questions: S'il etait du des indemnites par la sodete a un accuse 
dont Vinnocence avail He reconnue; and Quelles pourraient etre en 
France les his penales les moins sever es et cependant les plus efficaces 
pour contenir et reprimer le crime par des chdtiments prompts 
et exemplaires en menageant I'honneur et la liberie des citoyens.^ 
His arguments against capital punishment and in favor of a 
more humane penal code, which were successful in winning the 
prizes, occasioned a furious assault from the Mercure. Brissot 
thought that he perceived in the assault the hand of Lacretelle,^ 
but the satire proved to be the work of Garat.^ Although he 
was much hurt at the time, the affair resulted in a pleasant per- 
sonal acquaintance with both these writers. Another prize 
offered by the same academy for an essay on better education, 
for which Brissot likewise competed, led to his election to 
membership in the academy.'* During this time he also wrote 
Un Independant a Vordre des avocats, sur la decadence du harreau 
en France,^ a direct attack on the French bar, and the out- 
growth of his own experience. And influenced by his disgust at 
the quarrels and jealousy among men of letters, of which he 
had been a witness, he composed a treatise called De la Verite, 

^ Memoires, i, 228. He had already submitted an essay to the Academy of 
Besangon on Des funestes effets de Vegoisme, but received only honorable men- 
tion. His indignant protests suggest that he himself was not altogether free 
from the malady of which he wrote. See his correspondence on the subject. 
Correspondance, 7-8. 

2 Brissot does not say which Lacretelle, probably Pierre Louis, who was born 
in 1751 and died in 1824, a prominent lawyer, writer, and politician, and friend 
of Garat, D'Alembert, and Condorcet. He was especially known for his Dis- 
cours sur le prijugS des peines infamantes. 

^ Garat, Dominique Joseph, born 1749, died 1833. A writer and politician, 
was connected with the Mercure, and became a member of the Constituent As- 
sembly. He was made Minister of Justice after the 10th of August, 1792, but 
his moderation in regard to the massacres of September led to a break with 
his old friends, the Girondins. 

* Memoires, i, 230-34. * Brissot, Bibliotheque philosophique, vi, 344. 



20 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

ou meditation sur les moyens de parvenir a la verite dans toutes 
les connoissances humaines.^ These essays he meant to serve, 
however, merely as prefaces to larger works; the treatise on 
criminal law was to be followed by a Histoire universelle de la 
legislation criminelle, and the essay on La Verite by a search for 
what was certain in all human knowledge. In the mean time, 
while waiting for an opportmiity to carry out these ambitious 
plans, he began a compilation of material on criminal legisla- 
tion, which ultimately reached ten volumes, and which he 
called a Bibliotheque philosophique des lois criminelles.^ Not 
content with merely writing against abuses, he began to cogi- 
tate on methods of furthering the attack by organized effort. 
His idea, which he seems to have borrowed directly from La 
Blancherie,^ was to assail despotism and to spread abroad ideas 
of political, as well as of legal reform, by means of an organiza- 
tion of the savants and reformers of all Europe.^ This organi- 
zation was to be called a Lycee, and was to consist of three 
parts, a correspondence between members, a special publica- 
tion on the arts and sciences in England, and meetings which 
were to be held at the local office in London. From that center 
of freedom the members of the society were to "inundate 
Europe" with their writings against despotism. 

But in order to "inundate Europe" Brissot needed coopera- 
tion and financial support. After some more or less cautious 
sounding of various persons on the subject, he found in a certain 
Villar ^ apparently just the man he wanted. Villar, although 

^ Memoires, i, 189. 

* Ibid., I, 220, 226. See his correspondence with Droz, the secretary of the 
Academy of Besangon, on the subject. Correspondance, 11-19. 

' La Blancherie was born in 1752 and died in 1811. He was known especially 
as the founder of the Nouvelles de la republique des lettres et des arts. "C'Mait 
Vorgane d'une sorte de cercle artistique et sdentifique destine afournir aux savants 
et aux artistes un centre de ralliement." 

* Memoires, i, 191. 

^ Ibid., I, 239-42. Villar, Noel Gabriel Luce de, was born in Toulouse in 
1748 and died in Paris in 1826. In 1791 he was made constitutional bishop of 
Mayenne and later was a deputy from that department to the Convention. 
His chief work during the Convention was as a member of the Committee of 
Public Instruction. 



EARLY LIFE 21 

not a writer himself, had a wide acquaintance with men of let- 
ters and professed himself eager to use all his interest in Bris- 
sot's behalf. He had relations with all kinds of people and in 
many countries. He was most optimistic. Russian counts, 
Polish princesses, academicians and ambassadors alike, he was 
sure, would hasten to support the project. D'Alembert had 
written to Berlin, D'Argental to Tuscany; ^ some one else had 
written to La Harpe,^ and had recommended him to Russian 
friends ; Madame de Genlis ^ had spoken in his behalf to the 
Duke of Chartres, who was just about to start for Italy and who 
would further his plans there. Villar had audiences every day 
with the ministers, and if need be he would speak directly to the 
king. Finally, he introduced Brissot to Elie de Beaumont,* who 
declared that he was enchanted with Brissot's plan, and that he 
too was only waiting for the right opportunity to use his pen 
and his fortune to overthrow despotism. They would found a 
society, they would restore liberty to France, they would bind 
each other by the strongest oaths, they would seal the project 
with their blood. 

Full of confidence in these promises Brissot immediately be- 
gan to put his plans into operation. The first step was to pro- 
vide for cooperation in Switzerland, and he accordingly set out 

^ D'Argental, Charles Augustus de Ferrol, comte, was born in 1700 and died 
in 1788. He was a diplomat and man of letters and was chiefly known as a life- 
long friend of Voltaire. ' 

2 La Harpe, Jean Frangois de, was born in 1739 and died in 1803. He was 
celebrated for his dramatic and literary criticism in the Mercure and for his lec- 
tures on literature. 

* Genlis, Stephanie Felicite du Crest de Saint-Aubin, comtesse de, born in 
1746, died in 1830. At an extremely early age she showed great versatility. At 
the age of sixteen she married De Genlis, who afterward became the Marquis 
de Sillery, and, through her husband's connection with the house of Orleans, 
she came to be charged with the education of the children of the Duke of 
Chartres. With all her other natural endowments Madame de Genlis had the 
gift of being a successful teacher, and carried on her work with originality 
and great success. Having accompanied Madame Adelaide to England, she 
was proscribed as an Smigrie, but subsequently was allowed to return to 
France. 

* Mimoires, i, 240-41 . filie de Beaumont was a lawyer of some reputation, 
chiefly known for his memoir on the Calas case. 



22 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

for Neuchatel.^ But while on the way he received news from 
Geneva which changed his plans. A civil war had broken out 
in that city between the aristocratic and democratic factions, — 
a war complicated by the interference of the French on the side 
of the aristocratic party. It was now reported that the com- 
bined enemies of France — Berne and Savoy — were about 
to besiege the city, whereupon Brissot, getting excited by the 
chance of actually seeing a people in active revolt, set off post- 
haste for Geneva, only fearing that he might not get there be- 
fore the siege should begin. He had been urged to come by 
D'lvernais, the Swiss politician and economist,^ who gave him 
a warm welcome and introduced him to the leaders of the pop- 
ular party, among whom were Duroveray^ and Claviere.^ He 
was deeply impressed by the bravery of the people, and their 
efforts to gain their political sovereignty, and before he had 
been in the city forty -eight hours he had prepared an address 
to "its intrepid inhabitants to encourage them to a vigorous 
defense." ^ The lasting results of this experience upon Brissot 
were an account which he wrote shortly afterward, under the 
title of Le Philadelphien a Geneve,^ a lifelong enmity with 
Mallet du Pan,^ and a lifelong friendship with Claviere.^ 
On his return to Paris he was quietly married, on the 17th of 

1 MSmoires, i, 244. 

2 Ibid., I, 269. D'lvernais, Sir Francis de, a Genevese politician and econo- 
mist, born in 1757, died in 1842. He was exiled from Geneva in 1782 and went 
to England. At the time of the fall of Napoleon he returned and represented 
Geneva at the Congress of Vienna. 

^ Duroveray took a prominent part in the affairs of Geneva and drew up a 
code of laws for the city. He was afterward a friend and collaborator of Mira- 
beau. 

* ClaviSre, fitienne, financier and politician, born in 175.5, died in 1793. He 
wrote in collaboration with Mirabeau on financial subjects and became a life- 
long friend of Brissot. He was made Minister of Finance under the first Giron- 
din Ministry, and, after August 10, 1792, was one of the provisional executive 
council and from that time shared the fortunes of the Girondin party. 

^ Mimoires, i, 275. ® Ibid., i, 271. Also see p. 25. 

^ See Mallet du Pan and the French Revolution, by Mallet, 50. Mallet du Pan, 
Jacques, born 1749, died 1800, was a Swiss publicist. He was connected with 
the Mercure, and in the Revolution espoused the royalist cause. 

^ Memoires, i, 274. 



EARLY LIFE 23 

September, 1782, to Felicite Dupont.^ Felieite at this time was 
employed under Madame de Genlis in the family of the Duke 
of Orleans in the capacity of under-governess.^ Until his es- 
tablishment at London was well started, it did not seem best 
for Felicite to accompany her husband, and partially with a 
view to retaining her position in the mean time, the marriage 
was kept a secret. Although Felicite had little influence on his 
political life, in domestic life she never failed to be the good 
comrade and helpful wife which her devotion in the days of her 
engagement had promised. Moreover, in her family he found 
the comradeship which he had missed in his own family circle, 
and in her mother a real friend.^ 

The first proof of her friendship was to furnish him with 
money for his new enterprise. For, although Villar and Beau- 
mont were as voluble as ever in their promises of support, they 
did not produce any ready money, and such funds as he had to 
meet his immediate expenses were furnished by Madame Du- 
pont.* The question of money aside, his undertaking was a de- 
cidedly presumptuous one for a young man, not yet thirty, who 
was but little known in any part of the world, and particularly 
in England. But with his usual sublime confidence in success 
he set forth. 

Aside from the outcome of the Lycee, his residence in Eng- 
land had two important results: it brought him into relations 
with several discredited fellow countrymen which later turned 
out to be most unfortunate, and, on the other hand, it gave 
him the opportunity of meeting various Englishmen of note, 
and of acquiring a knowledge of English political institutions. 
Among these fellow countrymen of more or less unsavory repu- 
tation, Brissot made the acquaintance of an individual named 
Pelleport, which was to cost him an accusation for writing a 

1 See record of the marriage in archives of the Department of the Seine. 

2 This connection was afterward made much of by Brissot's enemies, who 
wanted to prove that he was devoted to the house of Orleans. See MSmoires, 
II. 15. 

' Ibid., I, 300-01. For the character of Felicite and the details of their life, 
see chap. xiii. * Ibid., i, 300. 



24 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

libel; of a certain Receveur, a spy in the employment of the 
French poHce, who, according to Brissot's account, was in part 
at least responsible for his imprisonment in the Bastille; and of 
the well-known libelist, Theveneau de Morande, to whom Bris- 
sot took a strong dislike and who afterwards became his bitter 
and persistent enemy. ^ His dislike for Morande was so in- 
tense that when the publicist, Swinton, his former employer,^ 
offered him the position of manager of the Courrier on condition 
that Morande be his colleague, he refused the offer and broke 
with Swinton. According to the account which Brissot gives 
in his memoirs, his feeling was due to the extremely bad reputa- 
tion of the latter as a libel writer,^ but this explanation seems 
hardly adequate. A further and more satisfactory explana- 
tion is given by Petion, who evidently obtained his information 
directly from Brissot, to the effect that certain articles had been 
inserted in the Courrier without his knowledge, articles which 
directly contradicted his principles, and for which he was made 
to appear responsible. The discovery that Morande was the 
author aroused his lasting hatred, and led to his refusal to have 
anything more to do with him. Whether or not this is the en- 
tire explanation, Morande in his wrath swore mortal hatred 
against Brissot, the result of which Brissot was later to know to 
his lasting sorrow.'* 

Meanwhile, through his journalistic work and his personal 
efforts he was making a number of more creditable acquaint- 
ances among people of note, among whom were Kirwan the 
chemist; Maty the scientist; Fanny Burney the novelist, whom 
he greatly admired; and Mrs. Macaulay the political pamphlet- 
eer and historian, with whose radical views he was already in 
sympathy.^ He also met Priestly, Price, Mansfield, Gibbon, 

^ Memoires, i, 318. ^ See p. 14. ^ MSmoires, i, 314, 317. 

* Petion, Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel, Charlotte Corday et les Girondins, ii, 
£27. 

* MSmoires, i, 349-59. Perroud suggests that these references to his acquaint- 
ances in London may have been drawn from the periodicals which Brissot pub- 
lished at this time, and that they did not form part of his actual memoirs. 
Ibid., I, 354, note. 



EARLY LIFE 25 

John Adams, David Williams, and Jeremy Bentham, The last 
two he especially admired. "Williams," he declared, "of all 
the Englishmen of letters seems to me the one who has the 
most universal philosophy, who is the most free from all na- 
tional prejudices." With Bentham he was on terms of some 
intimacy, corresponded with him, and went frequently to see 
him.^ With such acquaintances he had unusual opportunities 
for studying at first hand English political conditions. 

In the midst of these manifold interests Brissot also found 
time to publish a criticism of St. Paul, called Lettres philoso- 
fhiques sur Saint Paul, and to complete Le Philadelphien a 
Geneve, the work inspired by his sojourn at Geneva during the 
revolution.^ Meantime he began to find the separation from 
his wife insupportable, and in the summer of 1783 he sent for 
her to join him in London.^ 

All this time he was struggling to put the Lycee on a firm 
footing. The original promoters having left him in the lurch,^ 
money for the enterprise was finally furnished by a man named 
Desforges, whom he had first met at Mentelle's.^ According to 
Brissot's own account, — with which, however, Desforges does 
not agree, — it was Desforges who took the initiative and 
eagerly pressed funds upon him, while Brissot himself, doubting 
whether Desforges was capable of appreciating the noble mo- 
tives which actuated him in the enterprise, hesitated. Brissot 
further declares that from the first moment of his acquaint- 
ance with Desforges he was suspicious of him, though this may 
be a case of being a "prophet after the fact." At all events, 
they came to an understanding. It was agreed that Desforges 
was to furnish fifteen thousand francs, of which, however, he 
paid down only ten or twelve thousand, and a contract was 

^ MSmoires, i, 364-66. See also letters of Brissot to Bentham. Correspond- 
ance, 58, 59, 64. Later during the course of the Revolution Brissot was instru- 
mental in getting the Legislative Assembly to declare both Williams and Ben- 
tham French citizens (Moniteur, August 28, 1792), and in having Williams 
invited to come over to France to aid the committee of the Convention which 
was engaged in drawing up a constitution. See also Correspondance, 305-06. 

2 See p. 22. » ggg p. 390. * See p. 391. ^ Memoires, i, 235-36. 



26 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

drawn up, in which it was stipulated that the Lycee was to be 
continued for at least seven years, and was to consist of three 
branches, an assembly, a correspondence, and a journal of the 
arts and sciences in England.^ But this "universal confedera- 
tion" of the friends of liberty and of truth, as Brissot called it, 
was a complete failure. He had already printed a couple of 
volumes of the Correspondance, but the publisher absorbed all 
the profits of the edition printed in Germany, and not a single 
copy was allowed to enter France. ^ 

He now announced the journal or magazine which was to be 
entitled Tableau exact des sciences et des arts en Angleterre, but 
unfortunately he scorned all the ordinary means of making a 
journal attractive, and too frankly announced that its one 
object was to be useful.^ The newspapers did not mention the 
prospectus, and very few persons paid any attention to it. He 
was still hopeful, however, and in a vain attempt to attract sub- 
scribers he prepared a Tableau des Indes, which he distributed 
gratis to the few who did support the establishment. It re- 
mained to provide a place for the meetings of the society. The 
house where he was living contained no room sufficiently large 
for the purpose, but his friend David Williams offered to share 
with him the hall where he himself was then giving lectures. 
Unfortunately, however, Brissot had no money left with which 
to pay his share of the expense — nearly eight thousand livres. 
He accordingly applied to Desforges for the remainder of the 
fifteen thousand francs, which he had not yet paid, but to his 
consternation found him unwilling to pay. 

Troubles now began to come thick and fast. He had no ade- 
quate means of providing for his family, recently increased by 
the birth of a son."* Desforges, who had arrived from France, 
proved at this juncture a most unwelcome guest. Moreover, 
Desforges was discontented with the lajck of returns, and not 
only refused to furnish the remainder of the money promised, 
but requested a dissolution of the society, and loudly demanded 
the return of the money he had already invested; and to crown 
1 Mimoires. i, 339-42. ^ Ibid., i, 329. » Ibid., i, 339. * Ibid., i, 389-9?. 



EARLY LIFE 27 

Brissot's misfortunes, within a few days after the birth of his 
child, while his wife was still very ill, he was arrested at the in- 
stigation of his printer, and thrown into prison for debt. After 
a brief imprisonment, during which he suffered torturing anx- 
iety lest his wife or child might die in his absence, he managed, 
through the help of friends and of Madame Dupont, to satisfy 
his creditors, and was released. But he was at the end of his 
resources in London, and, much as he hated to leave his wife, he 
had to set out for France at once, in order to try to raise funds. ^ 
As the climax to his misfortunes, shortly after his arrival in 
Paris, on July 12, 1784, he was arrested and thrown into the 
Bastille, charged with being implicated in the production of 
certain libels. ^ His first thought was for his wife, who, he 
feared, might not be able to survive the shock at hearing what 
had befallen him. In his distress he appealed to his mother- 
in-law. Madame Dupont was equal to the occasion. In order to 
forestall any possible reports which might reach her daughter, 
she refused to wait for the ordinary boat and risked crossing 
the Channel in a small launch. Though somewhat consoled 
by the presence of his mother-in-law with Felicite, he still 
feared the machinations of his enemies. His imprisonment he 
was sure was due to them — to the denunciations of Swinton, 
who had held Brissot's establishment responsible for loss of 
subscriptions to the Courrier; to Morande and Pelleport, who 
were in turn incited by Desforges, whose motive was to profit 
by Brissot's detention to settle to his own taste the affairs of 
the Lycee.^ 

Desforges had already accused Brissot of having swindled 
him, and had threatened, if he did not pay the sum demanded, 
to denounce him as a disseminator of libels. Meanwhile Brissot 
had accused Desforges of libel and of having insisted, in spite of 
strenuous objections, on taking up his abode in Brissot's house.* 
Desforges now carried out his threat and the result was two 

^ MSmoires, i, 391-95. 

2 Ibid., II, 5-7. See also Funck-Brentano, Les Lettres de cachet d, Paris, 413. 

' MSmoires, ii, 6-8. * Replique de Thheneau de Morande, 100-04. 



28 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

suits; one in the civil, the other in the criminal courts. These 
suits were brought in 1784; and in 1791, when Brissot was a 
candidate for election to the Legislative Assembly, they were 
still pending.^ 

The whole affair was then raked up afresh by Theveneau de 
Morande.2 He revived the charge made by Desforges and de- 
clared that it was true that Brissot had swindled Desforges out 
of fifteen thousand livres. Desforges was the dupe and the vic- 
tim, he asserted. In the first place, Brissot had inveigled Des- 
forges into investing his funds, and in order to do this he had 
deceived him as to the state of his own finances. In proof of 
this assertion Desforges adduced a letter of Brissot's, in which 
he declared that his father was worth two hundred thousand 
livres and that on his father's death he was sure to receive 
thirty thousand livres. Morande then put this letter in con- 
trast with another letter of Brissot's, in which he admitted that 
he had nothing, and that he could count on nothing from his 
parents. Morande further declared that the Lycee never ex- 
isted at all, that Brissot rented a house too small for the assem- 
bly which was to form so important a part of the Lycee, ^ and 
that he and his family lived at the expense of the society.* In 
substantiation of the last charge, Morande cited a statement 
from Brissot's accounts, in which the expenses of the society 
were set down in lump sums. As for the charge that Desforges 
had thrown himself upon Brissot's household, he had remained 
there only to prevent the sale of the furniture.^ 

In reply to these allegations Brissot declared that the anxiety 
to embark in the enterprise was all on the side of Desforges; 
that at first Desforges was ready to lend forty thousand livres, 
when he was asked for only ten thousand. The discrepancy in 
the two accounts of his prospects he explained by showing that 
one was written before, the other after, the death of his father.^ 

^ Petion, Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel, ii, 230-31, note. 

* See p. 219. ' RSpliqve de Theveneau de Morande. 

* Ibid., 68; Lettre aux electeurs, 15. " Re-plique, 77, 94. 

* Although in his memoirs the account of Brissot's connection with Des- 



EARLY LIFE 29 

The charge that the Lycee never existed he met by declaring 
that it was agreed upon that the Lycee was to consist of three 
parts, and as two of the three — the Correspondance, and the 
Journal of arts and sciences — were estabhshed, the absence of 
the third — the assembly — did not prove that the Lycee did 
not exist. As for his expenses, after having charged Desforges 
with juggling with the figures so as to convey a false impression, 
he produced an itemized account which very nearly covered 
the sum in question, and offered to show his receipts. That his 
family had lived at the expense of the society he absolutely 
denied.^ He then accused Desforges of having libeled him, of 
having persisted in staying in his house during his imprison- 
ment in the Bastille, and of having insulted his wife, mother- 
in-law, and sister-in-law. 

The question is: In view of the evidence submitted on both 
sides, was or was not Brissot guilty of fraud.'* Of the charges 
there are two points on which he does not clear himself. The 
letter which he wrote to Desforges, setting forth his prospects, 
could hardly be justified, even on the plea of extreme opti- 
mism, since he was on bad terms with his father, and in any 
case was but one of a number of heirs. Again, his defense that 
the Lycee existed because the Correspondance and the Journal 
had been established, was in the nature of quibbling, since 
Morande had used the term Lycee to mean the assembly, 
which clearly did not exist. Moreover, there are two charges 
which he admits — that he did rent a house too small for the 
meetings of the assembly, though it served as an office; and 
that he furnished the house at the expense of the society.^ 

On the other hand, Brissot did succeed in showing that Des- 
forges alone was to be responsible for the funds, and that, as he 
himself had contributed out of his own pocket, he was the cred- 
itor, not the debtor; that Desforges had refused arbitration 
and had approved his accounts.^ It is also to be taken into 

forges follows the account of the death of his father, there is nothing to show 
that he had not made his acquaintance before that time. 

1 Repliquc de Brissot. ^ Ibid., 4-19. ' Ibid., 4-8. 



30 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

consideration that Desforges's side of the matter is presented 
by Theveneau de Morande, a professional hbel writer.^ Indeed, 
according to Vatel, Desforges tried to restrain Morande, and 
even disavowed some of his utterances.^ And finally, if the ar- 
rangement was not a loan, but a partnership, as it had every 
appearance of being, and as it was evidently regarded, Des- 
forges would have but doubtful claim to the money he had in- 
vested. That Brissot misused the money is probable, but that 
he deliberately planned to defraud Desforges is hardly credible. 
That Desforges was directly responsible for Brissot's impris- 
onment in the Bastille is also a matter of doubt. The formal 
charge brought against him was that he had written libelous 
pamphlets against Marie Antoinette, and especially that he 
had had part in the production and circulation of a pamphlet 
entitled Le Diahle dans un henitier.^ The latter did not concern 

1 In his early youth Morande was involved in various scandals and in- 
trigues, which led to his imprisonment by lettres de cachet. On his release he fled 
to England; there he devoted himself to writing violent Ubels on various per- 
sons of prominence in France. His unexpected success suggested to him a new 
means of livelihood and he proceeded to engage in a system of blackmail. His 
most successful effort in this line was an infamous attack on Madame Du Barry, 
for the suppression of which he demanded a large sum from the French Court. 
He managed to foil the attempts of the police sent to arrest him, and as a last 
resoiu-ce Louis XV entrusted the affair to Beaxunarchais, who was obliged to 
pay Morande twenty thousand livres and a pension of four thousand livres for 
the suppression of the libel. Not long after this episode he was hired by Louis 
XVI as a police agent in England to suppress Ubels, evidently on the principle 
of " set a thief to catch a thief." During the Revolution he returned to France, 
where in 1791 he founded the Argus patriate, devoted to the interests of royalty, 
thus becoming the ally of the monarchy which, earher in his career, he had 
insulted. See ThSveneau de Morande, by Robiquet. 

2 Vatel, II, 231, note. 

' Brissot, Reponse a tous les libellistes, 40. See also Memoires, i, 313-17; and 
Funck-Brentano, Les Lettres de cachet a Paris, 413. "Brissot de Warville 
(Jacques Pierre) avocat au Parlement. EntrS le 12 juillet, 178k, sur ordre contre- 
signi Breteuil. Pour libelles. Sorti le 10 septembre, 178k, sur ordre contresignS 
Breteuil." Also see Petion, Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel, Charlotte Corday et les 
Girondins, ii, 228. "Cette detention avait pour pritexte de prStendues liaisons 
avec un nommS belleport [sic], ce belleport avait publiS d. Londre un libelle infame 
contre la Reine def ranee et on voulut bien supposer que Brissot avait travailU h ce 
libelle." Petion evidently confuses here Le Diable dans un bSnitier with the 
libels against the queen. 



EARLY LIFE 31 

the queen, but was an arraignment of Receveur and Theveneau 
de Morande as spies of the French poHce and was afterward 
made much of by Morande in his attack on Brissot. The 
explanation given by Brissot was that Pelleport, in exaspera- 
tion because Receveur had refused to pay the price demanded 
for a Hbel on Marie Antoinette which he (Pelleport) claimed to 
have in his possession, had published this satire, Le Diable dans 
un benitier, against Receveur and Receveur's protege Mo- 
rande. But that he himself had any part, either in the libel on 
the queen or in the satire, Brissot indignantly denied. He as- 
serted that, on the contrary, he had done his best to induce 
Pelleport to give up his traffic in libels and to suppress the 
satire.^ 

This explanation is in large part corroborated by certain re- 
ports at the Ministere des affaires etrangeres at Paris. It seems 
that the affair of the libels against Marie Antoinette dated 
from the year before, and for some time Brissot's name figured 
in the reports of the police spies on the matter.^ He was sus- 
pected of being the joint author,^ and further was represented 
by Receveur in a report to Lenoir as the possible author also 
of some of the letters written by Pelleport in the course of his 
attempts to traffic with the Government.^ Lenoir, however, 
was not inclined to put much faith in Receveur's suspicions. 

^ MSmoires, i, 321; also Replique, 26. According to Robiquet (Theveneau de 
Morande, 64) the authorship of Le Diable dans un bSnitier has never been defi- 
nitely fixed and has even been attributed to Morande himself. At aU events, 
the whole matter is of interest as throwing light on the police spy system of 
the Old Regime. Receveur and Morande, both men of more than doubtful 
reputation, and the latter himself a libelist, were hired by the French Govern- 
ment to find the sources of certain libels against the queen and to pay for their 
suppression. Brissot's statement that Receveur refused to pay Pelleport five 
hundred louis, seems probable in view of Robiquet's statement that Receveur 
had only two hundred guineas with which to make the purchase. See Rece- 
veur's own statement in his report to the French Ambassador, of May 22, 1783. 
(Aff. Strangeres, Angleterre, 542, f . 278.) In the same report Receveur speaks of 
Pelleport having showed to Brissot this libel against the queen. 

^ See Aff. Hrangeres, Angleterre, 542, f. 278. 

' See Notefaite a la hate, April 21, 1783. Aff. Hrangeres, Angleterre, 542, f. 79. 

* Lenoir au Comte de Vergennes, May 4, 1783. Aff. Etrangeres, Angleterre, 
542, f. 183. Also Comjpte rendu par Receveur, May 22, 1783, 542, f. 278. 



32 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Because Brissot was acquainted with various refugees, Lenoir 
declared, Receveur had jumped to the conclusion that Brissot 
was also a refugee. Receveur's suspicions, moreover, were per- 
haps quickened by the personal grudge which he bore against 
him. At all events, the affair blew over so far as Brissot was 
concerned till it was again brought up against him as a reason 
for his imprisonment in the Bastille. 

As for Le Diable dans un benitier, the whole evidence against 
Brissot consisted, first, in a certificate by a printer's assistant 
to the effect that Brissot had corrected the proofs of Le Diable, 
and second, in a letter written by a man named Vingtain, in 
which arrangements were referred to for the distribution of the 
pamphlet.^ In answer, Brissot adduced a report of the matter 
made by the Minister Breteuil in which the certificate that 
Brissot had corrected the proofs was stated to be of doubtful 
value. 2 The other piece of evidence Brissot apparently did not 
try to disprove. Moreover, it is to be remembered that he cor- 
dially disliked both Morande and Receveur. It seems not im- 
probable, therefore, that he was guilty of having assisted in the 
circulation of the pamphlet. Nor is it to be wondered at con- 
sidering that they in turn cordially disliked him, that they may 
have had something to do with instigating his arrest. 

But whether guilty or not, two months, which seemed to him 
two centuries, passed before he could obtain his release. All 
this time his family and friends — the number of whom was a 
tribute to the interest he had inspired — were exerting their ut- 
most efforts in his behalf. Loyseau, the distinguished jurist, 
wrote to an influential woman of his acquaintance, asking her 
in turn to get the Prince de Conti ^ to write to the commandant, 
Delaunay; Men telle urged Madame Genlis-Sillery to work 
through the Duke of Chartres, while various literary men, both 
in England and France, including Condorcet, Bernardin de 

* Reflique de Theveneau de Morande, 58, 106. 

^ Reponse de Brissot, 19-20. 

^ Prince de Conti, Louis Frangois Joseph, a member of the famous house 
of Conti, was born in 1734 and died in 1814, an ardent royalist and supporter 
of monarchy. 



EAELY LIFE 33 

Saint-Pierre, Kirwan, Priestly, and Lord Mansfield, took up his 
cause and proclaimed their belief in his innocence.^ Most of all 
his release was due, so he felt, to the efforts of his wife, who 
moved heaven and earth to secure it. The authorities, how- 
ever, made what seemed to Brissot a hard condition, — he had 
to promise to give up his Lycee.^ It is a significant fact that in 
enumerating those who aided him, Brissot omits altogether to 
mention the help received from the Duke of Chartres, after- 
ward the Duke of Orleans,^ and that he minimizes the help of 
Madame Genlis-Sillery,* and denies that he ever had any sub- 
sequent relations with her.^ This is not to be wondered at, 
considering that one of the charges for which, at the time he 
wrote his memoirs, he was in prison and under sentence of 
death, was of adherence to the house of Orleans. 

On his release from the Bastille, September 10, 1784,^ Brissot 
found his finances in desperate condition, and was only saved 
from complete bankruptcy by the generosity of Claviere and 
of his mother-in-law.'' For a time, at least, there were to be no 
more schemes for Lycees nor "universal confederations." He 
had all that he could do and more to provide for his family, 
soon to be increased by the birth of a second child.^ He and 

^ MSmoires, ii, 10. 

^ Ibid., II, 24. See also Biographical Dictionary, n, 9. Why this should 
be a hard condition, when the LycSe had already failed, is not clear. See fur- 
ther Brissot's account in hjs Reponse d, tous les libellistes, 20. 

* Charpentier, La Bastille devoilee, i, troisieme livraison, 78 . 

^ See the account of the matter given by Madame Genlis-Sillery herself. 

* According to her story she did help him subsequently to get employment 
in the household of the Duke of Orleans, but says that before his incarceration 
in the Bastille she had never even heard of him. In other particulars, too, her 
account contradicts Brissot's memoirs; for instance, she makes his imprison- 
ment antedate his marriage. Her story is evidently not to be relied upon. 

® Funck-Brentano, Les Lettres de cachet, 413. '^ MSmoires, ii, 24. 

' See Archives nationales, F la 1570,9 florial, an IV. Among the Roland pa- 
pers at the Bibliotheque Nationale (n. ac. fr. mss. 9534, fol. 328) is a rough draft 
of a letter written three weeks after the birth of his child, asking for some sort 
of an appointment which would enable him to go to America. M. Perroud, in 
his Notice sur la Vie de Brissot (p. xl), in the Correspondance calls attention to 
the revelation contained in the letter of "une vraie dStresse morale et meme ma- 
tirielle, car, dans un coin du papier on trouve un compte de 'depense pour la 
couche ' s'Mevant d la somme de six livres, six sols [sic]" 



34 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Felicite lived with the greatest frugality, but in spite of rigid 
economy and unremitting industry, he had frequently to 
borrow from his friends.^ His best friend seems to have been 
Claviere, who lent him money, took him into his house, and 
helped him out in diflSculties. 

While struggling with his own personal finances he began to 
write on financial subjects for Mirabeau. He had already had 
some correspondence with Mirabeau on behalf of the English 
Ambassador at Copenhagen, ^ and he was now brought into 
closer relations with him through Claviere. The latter was one 
of the men whose pen Mirabeau knew so well how to use for his 
own advantage, and Brissot was soon induced to lend his assist- 
ance. He and Claviere worked together on the Caisse d'es- 
compte, which was published under Mirabeau's name.^ They 
also wrote the Banque de Saint Charles, which they intended to 
publish themselves, and which was in fact out of the press 
when they were prevailed upon by Mirabeau to turn it over to 
him. Mirabeau had been asked to furnish such a work by 
Calonne, and promptly availed himself of this opportunity. 
According to Brissot,* Claviere paid the expenses and Mira- 
beau pocketed the profits. Brissot was probably mistaken in 
this, however.^ 

* "II Stoit impossible d'etre plus simple dans sa parure d' avoir des appartemens 
moins recherchSs d' avoir une table plus frugal et defaire enfin mains de depenses ; 
sa femme eioit egalement la simplicite meme une excellente mere defamille unique- 
ment occvpee de ses enfans. Souvent brissot [sic] n'avoit pas six francs dans sa 
poche, il etoit obligS de faire a chaque instant de petits emprunts d, ses amis et cet 
Stat de medioerite a toujour s exisie pour lui cependant il ne depensoit jamais un sou 
d. ses plaisirs cependant personne ne travailloit plus que lui." Petion, Notice sur 
Brissot, in Vatel, ii, 231-32. 

2 Memoir es, n, 28-32. 

^ Ibid., II, 31. This statement throws light on Mirabeau's assertion that 
the work was written within four days after it was promised to Calonne, and 
published eight days after. Lomenie, Les Mirabeau, iii, 630. 

* Memoires, ii, 31 . Mirabeau, however, declared that he did not receive any 
money from Calonne. Lomenie, iii, 633. 

* The following letter tends to strengthen Mirabeau's assertion that Brissot 
was paid. The original is in the collection of the late M. Paul Arbaud, of Aix, in 
Provence, and for a copy of it the writer is indebted to Professor Fred Morrow 
Fling, of the University of Nebraska: "Lettre de M. le Comte de Mirabeau d, M. 



EARLY LIFE 35 

With the free-and-easy fashion with which Mirabeau took 
the credit of the work of other people, Brissot professed to be 
much shocked. Nevertheless, he himself did not seem to have 
very rigid ideas of the rights of authors, for, apparently without 
any thought of impropriety, he proceeded to have printed a 
manuscript bearing the name of Turgot, which had fallen into 
his hands, and which bore the title of Plan des administrations 
provinciates, whereupon Mirabeau, for some reason, which was 
not clear at the time, became very angry and threatened Bris- 
sot with a lettre de cachet. Later the reason became apparent. 
It seems that Mirabeau, who had previously had possession of 
the manuscript, had already sold it to Calonne as his own 
work.^ Although Brissot had given the supposed author full 
credit and so had not been guilty of Mirabeau's sin of plagia- 
rism, his action offered Mirabeau a point of attack. It was 
most unbecoming, he declared, for a man of his lofty princi- 
ples not to recognize the sacred rights of property. ^ This 
accusation Brissot denied. He reminded Mirabeau that the 
author had been dead several years and that he himself had 
published the manuscript in the full persuasion that there was 
no one who had a right to claim it.^ 

le Cont^ G"^. Paris, 30 Mai, 1785. Monsieur: J'attens vos ordres; la ■premiere 
ibauche de mon travail estfaite et n'exige meme plus que quelques notes, les der- 
nieres touches de Vecrivain et votre approbation. J'ai cru qu'il ne fallait pas un 
panflet qu'on ne lit point, mais un ouvrage {ex prqfesso) ; et quoique fait trop vite, 
pour etre bien redige, celui-ci contiendra au moins des principes sains et les f aits 
principaux avec leurs consequences naturelles. J'ai Vhonneur de vous addresser 
la note des debourses de V edition que vous m^avez charge defaire arreter, tel que M. 
Brissot de Warville me la fait remettre et voila pourquoi le costume de cette note est 
si peu decent ; c'est a lui ou cl M. Claviere que vous voulez bien en f aire remettre le 
montant, ce detail m'etant absolument Stranger. Je crois Vouvrage St. Charles tres 
presse ; ainsi j'ose solliciter lafaveur d'une prompte audience." 

^ The plan, although bearing the name of Turgot, was written, in part at 
least, by Dupont de Nemours-Lomenie, Les Mirabeau, iv, 87. Brissot dis- 
covered the fact later. Calonne, it seems, showed the manuscript to Dupont, 
who "lui apprit que ce manuscrit sur les Administrations provinciates nappar- 
ienait meme pas en entier a Turgot, et que c'etait lui qui en avait compos6 autrefois 
le plan pour le ministre." Brissot, Memoires, ii, 37. 

^ See the Correspondance, 94-95. 

' As a governmental decree of August 30, 1778, gave the control of a man's 
manuscript after his death to his heirs, Brissot was legally in the wrong. 



S6 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

In spite of this quarrel, Brissot seems to have fallen again 
under the spell of Mirabeau's charms. At all events, he ad- 
mired "his hatred of despotism and the courage with which he 
attacked it when he found it." At this time Mirabeau was 
planning to publish a paper with the innocuous title of Analyse 
des papiers anglais, in which he proposed to set before the 
French people certain truths which would not be welcome to 
the French Government, but unfortunately he was not any too 
familiar with the English language or with the state of Eng- 
land. Brissot could not resist this temptation and of his own 
accord offered his services to Mirabeau. But the views which 
Brissot expressed in his articles on the trial of Warren Hastings, 
and the situation of the English in the East Indies, led to dis- 
putes between Mirabeau and Mallet du Pan. In these disputes 
Brissot, who had already come into collision with Mallet on 
account of their opposing views on the Genevan revolution, 
took a not unwilling part — in some cases writing letters to 
Mallet which were published under Mirabeau's name.^ 

Meanwhile Brissot continued writing on his own account, 
and in the course of the four years from his release from the 
Bastille to his departure for America, published a considerable 
number of works. His three aims were to popularize knowledge, 
to attack abuses, and to further reform. To this end he con- 
tinued the publication of the Bibliotheque philosophique,^ and 
brought out his attack on canon law, L'Autorite legislative de 
Rome aneantie, written some years before;^ translated Mackin- 
tosh's Travels in Europe, Asia and Africa;^ and published, be- 
sides, two letters to the Emperor Joseph II, on emigration and 
punishment for crime,^ a criticism of the travels in America by 
the Marquis de Chastellux,® an attack on a new plan for an in- 

1 Memoires, ii, 38. ^ See p. 20. ^ See p. 41. 

^ Voyage en Europe, en Asie, et en AJrique. 2 vols., London, 1786. 

^ Un Defenseur du peuple ct I'Empereur Joseph II, sur son reglement concern- 
ant V emigraiion, ses diverses rSformes, etc. Dublin, 1785. And Lettre a Veni' 
pereur sur Vatrocite des supplices qu'il a suhstitu^s comme adoucissement a la 
peine de mort. Bruxelles, aout, 1787. 

^ Examen critique des voyages dans VAmSrique septentrionale de M. le Mar- 
quis de Chasiellux. London, 1786. 



EARLY LIFE 37 

surance company,^ and a denunciation of a threatened proposal 
of bankruptcy. 2 He also, with the assistance of his wife, trans- 
lated a History of England in a series of letters from a nobleman 
to his son; ^ and in collaboration with Claviere, wrote what was 
up to this time his most important production, De la France et 
des Etats Unis^ The ostensible object of this work was solely 
to promote commercial and political relations between France 
and the United States; its real purpose was, further, to present 
so attractive a picture of the future prosperity of the Americans 
that his fellow countrymen would be tempted to imitate their 
conduct and to recover their own liberty.^ But Brissot was 
never content with merely writing in the interests of reform; 
he must also be organizing. With the two objects in view just 
stated he now projected an organization to be called the Societe 
Gallo-Americaine, but it seems never to have been carried out.^ 
In the midst of all this literary work Brissot somehow found 
time to take an interest in the discoveries which were being 
made in so-called animal magnetism. Learning that Bergasse 
was the chief exponent of these studies, he hastened to make 
his acquaintance and even wrote a pamphlet on the subject 
himself, Un mot aux academiciens, in which he told them in no 
jQattering terms what he thought of them for their scorn of 
Bergasse's discoveries.^ 

^ Denonciation au public d'un nouveau projet d' agiotage, London, 1786, and 
Seconde Lettre contre la compagnie d'assurance, London, 1786. 

^ Point de banqueroute ou Lettres a un creancier de Vetat, sur V impossibility de 
la banqueroute nationale et sur les moyens de ramener la crSdit et la paix. Londres, 
1787. See p. 39. The publication of this work brought upon Brissot a lettre de 
cachet, to escape the consequences of which he was obliged to flee to England. 
He soon returned to France. Memoires, ii, 69. 

' Published under the title of Lettres philosophiques et politiques, sur Vhis- 
toire de VAngleterre depuis son origine jusqu'a nos jours. Traduis de V anglais. 
2 vols. London, 1786. 

* See p. 48. * Mimoires, ii, 52. ^ See p. 61. 

' Memoires, ii, 53. Bergasse, Nicholas, lawyer and politieian, was bom in 
1750. He became known for his researches in animal magnetism, and later for 
his connection with the celebrated suit of Korman. In pleading the case of Kor- 
man against his wife, he attacked ministerial despotism and came into conflict 
with Beaumarchais who defended Korman's wife. Elected to the States- 
General he presented a draft of a constitution, but on its rejection retired in 



38 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

He was delighted to find that Bergasse too was interested 
in poHtical reform, and Hke himself was secretly working for it. 
"The time has arrived," Brissot quoted Bergasse as saying to 
him, "when France has need of a revolution. But to work 
openly for it is to fail; to succeed some mystery is necessary; 
men must be brought together under pretext of physical ex- 
periments, but in reality for the purpose of overthrowing des- 
potism," ^ Brissot was also delighted to take part in these 
gatherings. They were held at the house of Korman,^ which 
appears to have been a regular foyer of revolution. ^ According 
to Brissot's own account in his memoirs, he was the only one 
who preached there an out-and-out republicanism.* It is to be 
remembered, however, that at the time he wrote the memoirs 
it was to his advantage to appear to have been a repubhcan 
at as early a date as possible. 

Just at this juncture an unexpected chance was offered to 
Brissot to engage in practical work in philanthropy and reform. 
The Duke of Orleans, who had recently succeeded to the head 
of the house, determined for his own ends to encourage a spirit 
of political agitation and criticism. As a man known to repre- 
sent this spirit Brissot was invited by the Marquis Du Crest, 
whom the Duke of Orleans had put in charge of the undertak- 
ing, to enter his service. That the opportunity came through 
his own reputation, and not as a result of Madame Brissot's 
early connection with the house of Orleans, Brissot was careful 
to emphasize.^ He hesitated for a moment about accepting the 
offer, fearing that it might involve some loss of independence, 
but at the same time he felt that here under the guise of philan- 
thropic effort was a glorious opportunity to make the palace of 
Orleans a center of revolutionary ideas, and to share in helping 

disgust. His name was associated with Brissot's in the prospectus of the SocieU 
Gallo-Americaine. See p. 61. 

^ Memoires, n, 54. 

^ Korman, known for his suit against his wife, which became celebrated 
through the connection with it of Bergasse on one side and Beaimiarchais on 
the other. 

' Memoires, ii, 56. * Ibid., II, 54. 

' Ibid., II, 14; also Biographical anecdotes, ii, 9. 



EARLY LIFE 39 

to restore liberty to France. He accordingly accepted the offer, 
at a salary which was uncomfortably small, though he refused 
to add to it by any underhand means or even by ways usually 
considered legitimate. 

To this enterprise Brissot not only devoted himself with ar- 
dor but enlisted the help of his friends. The Rolands assisted 
to found a Maison philanthropique at Villefranche.^ Brissot's 
friend, Blot, became secretary of a similar institution at Lyons, 
and Petion worked to found a third at Chartres. Meanwhile, 
he seems to have been laying plans for reform of a large and 
constructive order. Du Crest, it appears, was ready to de- 
nounce the existing ministry to the king, but Brissot assured 
him he must do more; that if he wanted both reform and glory, 
he must identify his cause and that of the house of Orleans with 
that of the people. He then proceeded to sketch a bold and 
comprehensive plan of procedure. They must form a party 
which should demand radical reform, and this party must find 
its support in the Parlement, which, in turn, must make every 
effort to gain popular support. ^ 

These plans, however, were not carried out, and Brissot soon 
severed his connection with the house of Orleans. The immedi- 
ate occasion of his withdrawal seems to have been a lettre de 
cachet with which he was threatened on account of his pam- 
phlets on bankruptcy.^ About this time, and perhaps because 
of the desirability of .absence from France, he made a brief visit 
to England. Before leaving the service of the Duke of Orleans 
he had visited Holland also, just at the height of the republican 
rising against the stadtholder. Thus for a second time Brissot 
had the opportunity of seeing a people actually in revolt.* 

^ Lettres de Madame Roland, ed. by Perroud, ii, 730-31. 

' Correspondance, 139, 160. 

' The lettre de cachet was doubtless occasioned in part by the suspicion with 
which he was regarded as being connected with the schemes of the house of 
Orleans. See Notice sur la vie de Brissot by Perroud in the Correspondance, 
p. xlv. Petion does not connect the severing of his connection with the house 
of Orleans with this lettre de cachet, but says it was due to his independence 
of spirit. Notice in Vatel, ii, 232. 

* See Perroud, Notice in the Correspondance, p. xliv; also Brissot, Memoires, 



40 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

He now threw himself into another kind of reform. He had be- 
come deeply interested in the agitation, especially in England, 
against the slave trade, and, unmindful of his former failures 
in philanthropic schemes, proceeded to establish a society 
called the Amis des Noirs, whose object, as the name implies, 
was to work in behalf of the negro. The importance of this so- 
ciety, and of Brissot's influence in connection with it, demands 
treatment at some length, but the story can best be told in con- 
nection with Brissot's career during the Revolution, when the 
society was most prominently before the public.^ 

Meanwhile he had become so discouraged by the slowness of 
reform in France, that he began to think of the possibility of 
emigrating to America. The desire to obtain information on the 
state of the negro in America, and also to investigate that coun- 
try as a possible place of residence for himself and his family, 
made him eager to undertake a journey to the new world. An 
opportunity soon presented itself. Some one was needed to 
carry on certain financial negotiations with the United States. 
Brissot was chosen, and in the spring of 1788 he set out.^ He 
was still in the United States, at the close of 1788, when the 
news from France suddenly brought him to the realization 
that a revolution might be really at hand. A man who all his 
life had been working to bring about a revolution, was not go- 
ing to miss the chance of being an active participant in it, and 
with all possible haste he hurried back to France. 

II, 67. In his Reponse Brissot says that he fled to Holland on account of the 
threatened lettre de cachet and thence to England, but from his Memoires it 
would appear that his trip to England antedated the lettre de cachet. 

1 See chap. viii. 

2 For the story of these travels and of their subsequent influence on Brissot's 
career, see chap. iv. 



CHAPTER III 

BRISSOT AS AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST BEFORE THE 
REVOLUTION 

The external facts of Brissot's early life have been presented. 
They show in some measure his ideals and aims and interests, 
but the picture needs to be completed by a portrait of the man 
as seen in his writings. During the fifteen years from 1774 to 
1789, which were devoted in large part to literary work, he pro- 
duced an enormous amount and on a great variety of subjects 
from the customs of ancient India to the "search for truth." 
All this work in its anti-Christian tendency, its emphasis on 
natural rights, its gospel of humanitarianism and political re- 
form, was typical of eighteenth-century thought. Moreover, 
it throws light on Brissot's personal characteristics, plainly 
revealing in the youth the father of the maturer man, and 
forecasts the part which he was to play in the Revolution. 

Brissot was at the same time the disciple of Voltaire, of 
Rousseau, and of Montesquieu. The influence of Voltaire was 
perhaps the least, but it is unmistakable in the general atti- 
tude and trenchant tone of his earlier works UAutorite legis- 
lative de Rome aneantie ^ and Lettres philosophiques sur Saint 
Paul. The former was an attack on canon law. The whole sys- 
tem, Brissot declared, rested on an extremely shaky foundation. 
The Holy Scriptures contained but little material on dogma or 
discipline, the decisions of the councils were not infallible, the 
decrees of the Popes had, in many cases, proved to be only a 
tissue of falsehood, and the authority of the writings of the 
church fathers was more than doubtful. And then, coming 
nearer home, French canon law was drawn from sources which 
were either uncertain or corrupt. In his Lettres philosophiques 
sur Saint Paul he attacked the teachings even of Scripture. 

1 See p. 86. 



42 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The authority of his epistles was doubtful in the first place, 
and St. Paul himself was a dangerous fanatic, who deliberately 
invented stories of visions and miracles in order to gain power. 
His preaching, moreover, consisted of intolerant and harmful 
doctrines injurious both to the individual and to society. The 
doctrine of predestination Brissot held in special abhorrence. 
"The system of predestination," he declared, "destroys all 
noble ideas of courage and of patriotism; the soul plunged into 
a state of flabby inertia, expects everything from the hand of 
its God, favors on earth and salvation in heaven. This doc- 
trine is therefore pernicious and enervating to society, in that 
it destroys all its energy; cruel to man, in that it makes him a 
mere slave; outrageous to the Supreme Being in that it makes 
him a capricious tyrant. St. Paul is, then, a dangerous dreamer, 
whose opinions ought to be proscribed." ^ Not only was St. 
Paul entirely wrong, but Christianity itself had done much 
harm. It was inevitable that it should work mischief, he as- 
serted, because it was "contrary to the passions which nature 
has graven on the soul of man." Nature speaks with impera- 
tive command and legislators should take warning and deal 
much more leniently with those alleged crimes or vices, such as 
prostitution, adultery, and bigamy, which have their root in 
natural instincts. 

Here Brissot was moved not so much by the rationalism of 
Voltaire as by the sentimentalism of Rousseau. He further held 
Rousseau's belief in man's natural goodness, or at least in his 
capacity for goodness, and in this belief he saw a further objec- 
tion to predestination with its assumption of man's natural 
depravity. In language which was the very echo of Rousseau, 
he declared : " Man is naturally good, or at least he is born in- 
different alike to vice and to virtue. Guide his steps in child- 
hood by good example, by habits of justice, of social respon- 
sibility, of equality, and he will become just and upright." ^ 

^ Lettres philosophiques sur Saint Paid, 105-06. Had Brissot forgotten the 
Puritans? 

* Lettre a Barnave, 61. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 43 

In his love of physical, as well as of human nature Brissot 
was also influenced by Rousseau. He was an indefatigable 
reader of Rousseau, especially of his Confessions, which he had 
read at least six times, and he was always quoting from his 
writings. Like Rousseau, he discoursed at length on the joys 
of solitude, and like him too, he was moved almost to tears by 
the beauty of a rustic life. But Brissot's assertion that they 
were much alike, not only in tastes but also in character, is 
amusing, considering that they rejM-esented the most divergent 
possible types, and proves either that Brissot did not under- 
stand Rousseau or that he did not understand himself.^ But 
influenced he certainly was by Rousseau, and that influence is 
perhaps chiefly seen in his constant reference to a state of na- 
ture. In his work Recherches philosophiques sur la propriete et le 
vol, he undertook to show that in a state of nature there was no 
such thing as theft. ^ His argument was as follows: Everything 
is in movement; there can be no improvement without action; 
all action presupposes the application of one body upon an- 
other, and all such application means friction and hence de- 
struction. Destruction, then, is the necessary consequence of 
movement; all things, therefore, are bound to destroy each 
other; and property is the right which one body has of destroy- 
ing another body in order to preserve itself. But to preserve 
itself the body must satisfy its needs. The satisfaction of needs, 
then, is the end and vcause of property. The right of property 
may be exercised upon animals as well as upon vegetables, and 
even upon man. There are no classes in nature. Each may live 
on his own species, if necessary. But as the cause of property 
is need, so the limit of property is the extinction of need. Hence 
there can be no exclusive property in a state of nature, neither 
can there be theft. The word "property" is erased from her 
code. She no more authorizes man to the exclusive enjoyment 
of the land than of air, or fire, or water.' 

1 MSmoires, i, 18-24, 249. 

^ See Goupil, La PropriStS selon Brissot de Warville. 

* Recherches philosophiques, in Bib. phil., vi, 323. 



44 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

After having stated these somewhat radical views, Brissot 
goes on to consider property in society. This kind of property, 
he declares, "has borrowed the features of property in a state 
of nature, and under this imposing mask has known how to 
secure for itself a veneration which it does not deserve, and 
defenders blinded by the desire for exclusive possession. It is 
this alleged property which is claimed by the rich financier who 
has constructed superb palaces at the expense of the public 
funds ; by the greedy prelate who swims in opulence ; by the lazy 
man of the middle class, who takes his ease while the day laborer 
is suffering. It is this alleged property which is claimed by that 
seigneur who, jealous of his rights, shuts his gates and closes his 
park and his gardens. ... It is this property which has created 
locks and bolts and a thousand other inventions which sepa- 
rate man from his fellows and isolate him, and which protect 
the alleged right of exclusive possession, the curse of natural 
rights. The characteristic of property in a state of nature is 
that it is universal, while property in society is individual, 
special. People ascribe to these two things — property in 
nature and property in society — the same origin and the same 
attributes, but they are absolutely different." ^ 

The doctrines and the conclusions to which these views 
inevitably pointed were suflSciently startling to evoke bitter 
criticism, of which Brissot apparently never heard the end. It 
certainly was not difficult to find in them a defense of canni- 
balism and a direct attack on property. When, therefore, early 
in 1792, the question of property rights was under discussion,^ 
his enemies made haste to confront him with these early utter- 
ances. In defense he declared that he had not meant his state- 
ments to apply to organized society, and cited various passages 
from this and other early works in substantiation of this con- 
tention. It was indeed true that Brissot, like Rousseau, was 
frequently inconsistent; and like Rousseau too, frankly ad- 
mitted the impossibility of the logical carrying out of his ideas. 

' Recherches philosopkiques, in Bib. pkil., vi, 323-24. 

* The question of rights of property in negroes was involved. See p. 266. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 45 

For instance, in this very essay on property and theft in which 
he had savagely attacked property, Brissot says almost in the 
same breath that property must be protected; in the essay on 
the Moyens d'adoucir en France la rigueur des lots penales he 
speaks with a sigh of regret of a proposition to distribute riches 
in a just proportion among all the citizens as a dream of the 
golden age, and in Le Sang innocent venge he declares that the 
triple basis of the social contract is formed by liberty, security, 
and property. 

But it was rather with the practical betterment of existing 
society than with theories concerning the state of nature that 
Brissot was chiefly concerned. He was imbued, not merely 
with the sentimentalism but with the humanitarian spirit of 
the age. Voltaire and Beccaria, Montesquieu and Filangieri, 
were pleading for a wider toleration, a milder penal system, 
and a more reasonable legal code. To this company Brissot 
joined his voice: "To better the penal legislation of all the 
peoples of Europe" was his somewhat comprehensive aim,^ 
and it was to this end that he wrote treatises, compiled dic- 
tionaries, and founded societies. His fundamental premise, 
which, however, far from being original with him, was com- 
mon to most of the humanitarians of the time, was that crime 
was in large measure a disease, the result of ignorance, oppres- 
sion, and poverty. To imagine, therefore, that it could be 
lessened by severe arid cruel punishments was sheer folly. ^ 

The only effective way was to get at the root of the diffi- 
culty and to remove the causes of crime — in other words, 
make people happy and crime would almost disappear of it- 
self. The particular means by which people were to be made 
happy, Brissot continued, — and here he showed the evident 
influence of Montesquieu, — depended in some measure on 
climate,^ but in general he advocated lowering the taxes, rais- 
ing the moral standard, which in turn would be furthered by a 

* Bib. phil.. Preface, i, iv. 

^ Moyens de pr6venir des crimes en France, in Bib. phil., vi, 3. 

' TMorie des lois criminelles, i, 113. 



46 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

reform of national education, the encouragement of arts and 
letters, the extirpation of begging, and the establishment of 
better police protection, — in short, more liberty and equality.^ 
But the process of education was slow and existing crime 
must be dealt with. Here Brissot pleaded for greater modera- 
tion. The motives of the criminal should be taken into account, 
and a crime committed through fear of death or because of 
hunger or distress should be treated with more leniency than 
crimes committed through other motives. Theft, for example, 
so often occasioned by want and even by actual starvation, was 
punished far too severely. " It is not the poor starving wretch," 
he declared, "who deserves to be pimished; it is the rich man 
who is so barbarous as to refuse to help his fellow man in dis- 
tress who is worthy of condemnation." ^ Moreover, the end of 
punishment must be borne in mind, to make reparation to 
society or to the individual wronged, to warn by example and 
to prevent the guilty from doing further injury.^ Any punish- 
ment which fails to fulfill these ends was unjustifiable. This 
was true, he declared, of the punishment of death, which not 
only did not prevent crime, but instead, by familiarizing peo- 
ple with the shedding of blood, offered an example of cruelty, 
and, moreover, involved the possibility of a fearful mistake.* 
Forced labor would act as a better deterrent and at the same 
time be more useful to society. Torture and mutilation were 
almost as objectionable as the death penalty, and for much the 
same reasons.^ In fact, the severity of punishment should be 
moderated and in all cases the punishment should fit the 
crime, both in proportion and in kind. Crimes against the 
state should be punished more severely than crimes against 
morality, because they injure the public welfare,^ and in this 
connection crimes against the dominant religion should be pun- 

1 Moyens d'adoiicir la rigueur des lois pSnales. 

2 Recherches philosophiques, in Bib. phil., vi, 334. 
' Moyens d'adoucir la rigueur des lois pSnales, 83. 
^ Ibid., 75-83; and Le Sang innocent veng6. 

5 Bib. phil., IV, 179-80. 

^ TMorie des lois criminelles. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 47 

ished as anti-patriotic.^ The state, moreover, should exercise 
control over punishment meted out by the ecclesiastical au- 
thorities, such as excommunications and exemptions, in so far 
as they applied to the individual citizen. ^ Imprisonment for 
debt should be abolished, and many offenses against morality 
might well be left to the scourge of an enlightened public 
opinion. 

There was crying need, Brissot argued further, of a radical 
change in the procedure of the criminal courts. Forced con- 
fession should be abolished, proof by direct witnesses and by 
experts should be better regulated, circumstantial evidence 
should be surrounded by greater safeguards, more publicity 
should somehow be secured, a fuller communication of the 
charges should be made to the accused at an earlier stage in the 
trial, and he should always be given a lawyer for his defense.' 
All this would tend to prevent the conviction of the inno- 
cent, but, if in spite of all reasonable precautions, an innocent 
person should be convicted, provision should be made for re- 
paration.^ Above all, the accused must be separated from the 
convicted, and even among the latter there must be some divi- 
sion, according to the nature of the crime. ^ Furthermore, the 
bar itself was in a state of decadence. This was due to the poor 
education of the would-be lawyer, the obscurity of the laws, 
the insufficient pecuniary rewards of the profession,^ and the 
narrow-minded spirit Vhich pervaded the entire body of ad- 
vocates. In short, in order to reform penal legislation the legal 
profession must be reformed.^ 

If Brissot 's ideas on penal legislation show the influence of 
the humanitarians, his ideas on economic principles show the 

* Moyens d'adoucir la rigueur des lots p4ncdes, 72-74. 
^ Theorie des lois criminelles. 

* Moyens d'adoucir la rigueur des lois pSnales, 94-112. 

* Le Sang innocent vengS. This work was severely criticized in the Mercure 
of August 3, 1782. 

* ThSorie des lois criminelles, i, 180-86. 

* Un Independant d, Vordre des avocats sur la dScadence du barreau en France. 
' Point de banqueroute. 



48 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

influence of the physiocrats. Like them he declared that the 
sole source of riches was in the soil, and not in money brought 
into the country in payment of exports; and that to try to en- 
rich the country by so restricting foreign trade that the exports 
might always be greater than the imports and the balance of 
commerce be in favor of the home country, was sheer futility. 
These ideas he developed at length in the work which he pro- 
duced in collaboration with Claviere, De la France et des £.tats 
Unis. 

France and the United States have need of each other's prod- 
ucts, he argued. The latter being a new country must first 
develop her agriculture, and meanwhile she must depend for 
her manufactured articles on Europe, England is quite alive 
to this situation, and is bestirring herself to develop commer- 
cial relations with the United States. France will lose her op- 
portunity. She ought to act quickly, for she needs commerce 
with the United States in order to develop her marine, and at 
the same time she stands in need of those very raw materials 
of which the United States has an abundance. To this end, 
protective duties should be removed, or at least lowered.^ 
There must be liberty, and it must be as complete as possible. 
Freedom of trade also meant to Brissot freedom of internal 
trade, and, above all, abolition of monopolies. He was espe- 
cially anxious to have the government monopoly removed on 
tobacco and salt.^ Monopoly, he declared, might enrich some 
few individuals, but it was destructive of national commerce. 

Many other evils, too, from which France was suffering were 
due, he maintained, to inherent injustice in the government 
itself. Rather than provide charitable institutions for the poor, 
he cried, do away with privilege, and you will find that there 
is little need of such institutions. Equality is the imperative 
need. In this connection, France might well learn from Eng- 
land where there exist much better resources against injustice 

^ De la France, 293. See also Journal du Lych, 13. For a fuller statement, see 
p. 64. 

2 De la France, 86. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 49 

and oppression than in France.* At the same time, Brissot was 
no blind admirer of England, and while he was continually 
trying to extend in France information about English institu- 
tions, he by no means refrained from criticizing their defects. 
He recognized, of course, the superiority of England over 
France in that the English people through their representa- 
tive institutions had a part in the government; but he agreed 
with David Williams in declaring that England had lost much 
of her vaunted political liberty because, as a matter of actual 
fact, the people had no adequate method of controlling either 
the legislative or the executive branch of the government. ^ 

But if Brissot was lukewarm in his approval of England, he 
was most enthusiastic in his admiration for the United States. 
In fact, there was hardly a chapter in any of his works in which 
he did not allude to the importance of following American ex- 
ample. It was not in the formless and obsolete institutions of 
England, he asserted again and again, but in the free institu- 
tions of the new republic across the water that a people seeking 
to recover its liberty might find the true model. ^ There was to 
be found liberty, equality, and the sovereignty of the people. 
The Americans had done well, he declared, to avoid following 
too closely the example of England in their constitutions; and 
to illustrate his meaning he compared, point by point, the new 
constitution of Pennsylvania with the corresponding English 
constitutional provisions, much to the advantage of the former. 
If the people of Pennsylvania only showed the same wisdom, 
he added, in working out their system of legislation, they would 
be doubly happy.^ In his theories regarding government Bris- 
sot was greatly influenced by Montesquieu, and a further cause 
of his admiration for the United States was that he saw there 

* Moyens d'adoucir la rigueur des his finales, 36, and DSnonciation d'un 
nouveau projet d'agiotage, 47. 

2 Letires sur la libertS politique. 

' "Je vis qu'on devait precher, aux sociSiSs, non d' adopter la charte informe et 
presqu'effacSe des Bretons, mais le modele simple, puis^ dans la nature par lea 
AmSricains." RSponse a tous les libellistes, 22. 

* Bib. phil., in, 254-58. 



so BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

that system of checks and balances so warmly advocated in 
Montesquieu's L' Esprit des lois ; ^ but above all, he admired the 
United States because it was democratic in spirit and repub- 
lican in government. He was a thorough-going democrat, and 
was constantly preaching equality. "There can be a real senti- 
ment of patriotism," he declared, "there can be real public 
welfare only when the individual of the lowest class is happy 
and free." ^ "Political nomenclature itself must be changed 
and the word people substituted for the Gothic and disgrace- 
ful term third estate." ^ If complete equality were imprac- 
tical under a monarchical form of government, he would 
have at least civil equality, that is to say, equality before the 
law. 

But however fully Brissot might adjust himself to existing 
conditions, at heart he was a republican. If he had carried out 
his theories, he would not have had monarchy at all. "Noth- 
ing that was unjust could be good politically," he maintained, 
and the inevitable limitations of equality under a monarchy 
were not consistent with the fullest justice. It did not always 
seem to him wise to proclaim his conviction, but he was cer- 
tainly bold enough in the defense of the alliance of France with 
the republican party in Holland, in opposition to the stadt- 
holder,^ and in his criticism of the systems of provincial 
administration proposed by Necker and by Turgot, he came 
out with great frankness. The title itself of the latter work 
was courageous. Observations of a Republican, and the views 
which he expressed therein did not belie the title. "Au- 
thority is everything, the people is nothing," he declared; 
"this is true of all monarchical governments."^ Again: "The 
methods of a republican government cannot be harmonized 
with the spirit and customs of a monarchy." And finally he 
declared it his opinion — an opinion of some importance, in 
view of his later attitude — that Turgot, in attempting to 

* Le Philadelphien a Geneve, 174. 

* Bib. phil. Discours priliminaire, i, xxxiv. 

' Point de banqueroute, 31. * Ibid., 80. " See p. 253. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 51 

make a constitution without changing the form itself of the 
government, had undertaken an impossibiUty. 

But putting aside the question of the theoretically best gov- 
ernment and accepting the existing monarchy, he was con- 
vinced that the reforms advocated by Necker and Turgot were 
not thorough-going enough even for the actual situation. Both 
these reforms, though differing in detail, provided for provincial 
assemblies which should have power to discuss and to oppose 
the taxes. Brissot particularly objected to the limitations put 
upon these assemblies in Necker's plan; namely, that they were 
to meet but rarely, remain in session only for a limited time, 
and not to correspond with each other. In view of these re- 
strictions he declared that Necker, instead of being a defender 
of the people, was really an advocate of absolute sovereignty. 
Turgot's plan, while it did oppose some check to the intendants, 
put the property qualification too high for electors of these 
local assemblies. Until a new system of taxation should be 
established, — that is, a tax laid on land only, — the con- 
sumer ultimately had a part in paying the tax and should be 
recognized. In short, every consumer of adult years should 
have a voice in choosing the men who were to control the ap- 
portionment of the taxes. Merely to apportion the taxes, how- 
ever, was not sufficient, and both plans failed to go to the root 
of the evil in that they did not provide for any real control of 
taxation. To be of any practical use, the provincial assemblies 
must have the right to refuse to pay the taxes, and also the 
means of backing up their refusal. This criticism of the alleged 
conservatism of Necker and Turgot is interesting, in view of 
the fact that they both fell because they were thought to be 
too radical. 

Meanwhile the existing taxes were proving more and more 
inadequate to meet the expenses of the government, the Parle- 
ment of Paris had resisted the imposition of new taxes, and the 
minister Brienne in despair had projected a declaration of 
bankruptcy. Apropos of this situation, Brissot wrote his essay 
Point de banqueroute,m which he upheld Parlement, vehemently 



52 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

opposed the declaration of bankruptcy, and declared that there 
must be no halfway measures, that thorough-going reform was 
needed. This included the determination of the deficit, the 
suppression of the particular taxes under discussion till the 
amount of the deficit should be ascertained and the said taxes 
consented to by the States-General, the establishment of a 
regular administration of the finances, a prompt calling of the 
States-General, and the abolition of lettres de cachet. 

To bring about such reforms there were two methods : a slow 
process of education and actual revolt. Both of these methods 
Brissot advocated, though he laid more stress on the former. 
Indeed, a large part of his writing had for its direct and avowed 
purpose to extend information and to educate public opinion. 
Such was his purpose, it will be remembered, in the Theorie 
des his criminelles,^ Un Independant a Vordre des avocats,^ De 
la Verite,^ Le Philadelphien a Geneve,^ the Correspondance uni- 
verselle,^ Lettres sur la liberie politique, the Journal du Lycee,^ the 
Tableau de la situation actuelle des anglais dans les Indes orien- 
teles,^ Examen critique des voyages dans VAmerique septentrio- 
nale de M. le Marquis de Chastellux,^ De la France et des Etats 
JJjiis,^ and above all, in his Bibliotheque philosophique.^^ Like 
the encyclopedists, he would popularize knowledge. He would 
unite men of letters of all quarters of the globe in a single body, 
so that, to quote his own language, "a Laplander transplanted 
to Paris or Madrid would be as much at home as though he were 
a Frenchman or a Spaniard, since he would realize that as a 
man of letters he belongs to all countries." ^^ 

In this connection it is to be noted that Brissot went even 
further and advocated, not merely a universal brotherhood of 
savants, but of nations. In fact, he held ideas which to-day 
would place him among the leaders of the Peace Movement. 
In his arguments in De la France et des Etats Unis, against re- 
strictive tariffs, he declared that nature evidently meant all 

1 See p. 13. 2 See p. 19. ' gge p. 20. * See p. 22. 
5 See p. 26. « See p. 29. ^ See p. 26. » See p. 36. 
8 See p. 48. "> See p. 20. " Journal du Lyc4e. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 53 

men to be brothers/ and, apropos of the conclusion of peace 
between Great Britain and her former colonies, he wrote: "Let 
all men, English, French, Spaniards, Dutchmen, Catholics, 
Protestants, Jews, abjure the fatal prejudices which divide 
them. Let them hold out to each other the hand of friendship, 
let there be no more distinctions, no more of that national 
pride, no more of that antipathy which dishonors humanity 
and stains the earth with blood." ^ 

This, however, was but a remote Utopia. Brissot's imme- 
diate aim was to bring about reform in existing governments. 
Education of both prince and people was necessary, but if it 
happened that the people were educated up to the necessity of 
reform while the prince was not, then revolt might be necessary. 
In fact, revolt occasioned by the vexatious acts of a magistrate 
who had abused his power in injuring the life or liberty of his 
people was not merely justifiable but a real duty. The revo- 
lutions in Holland,^ in Geneva,^ and in Hungary,^ he held to 
be cases in point, and wrote at length in their justification. 

In getting his works printed, Brissot had the usual struggle 
with the censorship of the press. This censorship was quite 
rigorous enough to justify Beaumarchais's famous satire. 
"They all tell me," Beaumarchais makes Figaro say, "that 
if in my writings I mention neither the government, nor public 
worship, nor politics, nor morals, nor people in office, nor in- 
fluential corporations, nor the opera, nor the other theaters, 
nor any one who has aught to do with anything, I may print 
everything freely, subject to the approval of two or three 
censors."*' The truth of this satire Brissot might well have 
realized when he secured permission to print his Tableau des 
anglais dans les Indes only on condition of submitting each 
number to the censorship of four ministers.' Considering the 
object of his work it is not to be wondered at that he was in 

^ See p. 49. ^ Correspondance universelle, i, 169. 

' Point de hanqueroute. * Le Philadelphien a Geneve. 

^ Un Defenseur du pevple a Vempereur (Joseph II). 
® See Le Manage de Figaro, Act v. Scene iii. 
' Reponse a tous les libellistes, 17-18. 



54 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

continual difficulties with the censorship. These difficulties 
account, perhaps, for the anonymous publication of several of 
his works, ^ and explain why he took the usual expedient of 
having so many of his books printed outside of France. It by 
no means follows, however, because his books bore the imprint 
of a certain place, that they were actually printed there. All 
of his works, for example, which were marked Berlin came from 
the press of Neuchatel.^ But to get his works printed was but 
the beginning of his troubles; he then had the further difficulty 
of getting them introduced into France. When he did secure 
a permission, he could never be sure that it might not be with- 
drawn at any time.' The Correspondance, for instance, which 
he had tried to introduce clandestinely, was seized by the 
French government, so that he lost the whole edition and was 
forced to mourn at the same time the loss of ten thousand 
livres and the destruction of a work which he had hoped might 
hasten the reign of liberty in France. Taught by this lesson, 
he determined to be more cautious and to conceal the fact that 
his real object was reform; to quote his own expression, to sub- 
stitute the mine for the open assault. The mine which he pre- 
pared was an account of the English constitution. "The 
French government, however, fearing to see much light thrown 
on the subject, was on its guard. Some deception was neces- 
sary. I therefore asked permission to print a joiu*nal which 
was to be called Le Tableau exact des sciences et des arts en 
Angleterre. There was nothing alarming about that title, and 
the support of certain influential persons secured me a permit, 
to which, however, was attached the condition that the jour- 
nal must be written and printed in England, reprinted at Paris 
and submitted to a very rigorous censure." * 

^ At least three of his early works were published anonymously. 

2 "II y a des exemplaires de cette edition [1781] avec des litres ajoutSa aprh 
coup, qui portent Vindication d' Utrecht. Tous des Scrits de Brissot qui portent 
la rubrique de Berlin ont Sti imprimes a Neuchdtel d'ou Us Staient ensuite im- 
poriis clandestinement en France." Edition of 1836 of the TMorie. Avis de 
rSditeur, i, 1, note. 

* Memoires, i, 329. * RSponse a tous les libellistes, 15. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 55 

The mine was, in fact, Brissot's favorite mode of attack and 
one which he employed in several other works. What would 
have been considered radical and dangerous doctrines if put 
into practice, he concealed, for example, in the case of the 
Theorie des lots criminelles in an apparently harmless treatise on 
the theoretical side of the subject ; while the Bibliotheque philo- 
sophique was announced as a dictionary of information,^ and 
the work, De la France et des Etats Unis as a treatment of com- 
mercial relations.^ In short, the real object of all these works, 
as well as of most of his other writings, was to bring about 
radical reform — in the phraseology of the declaration of 
rights, liberty, equality, and sovereignty of the people — by 
peaceable means if possible, but if necessary by revolution. 

The reception which these various works received differed. 
Some of them, such as the Independant a I'ordre des avocats 
and the Examen critique des voyages dans VAmerique septen- 
trionale de M. le Marquis de Chastellux, in part, perhaps, be- 
cause of their polemic nature, attracted considerable attention 
and provoked the criticism of journalists and pamphleteers.^ 
The work, De la France et des Etats Unis, though it was like- 
wise criticized, seems to have had much success on its own 
merits.* Brissot, indeed, complains that the journals paid no 
attention to it, but at least it was translated into several lan- 
guages.^ Some of his other works apparently found but few 
readers besides the censors. According to Petion, who, however, 
as Brissot's friend, was perhaps prejudiced, they deserved a 
better fate. Le Sang innocent venge, he declared, was full of 
energy and eloquence, the letters to the Emperor Joseph were 
veritable masterpieces, and the Bibliotheque philosophique, if it 

1 MSmoires, i, 226. 2 See p. 48. 

' The Independant d, I'ordre des avocats created a great furor among the mem- 
bers of the bar. A couple of pamphlets were written against it and steps taken 
to suppress it. Bibliotheque philosophique, vi, 344. On the Examen critique, 
see the Journal de Paris of November 16, 1786, for a defense of Chastellux's 
opinion of the Quakers. 

* See the Mercure politique of June 30, 1787, for an attack on De la France 
and for the answers of Brissot and Claviere. 

^ See Bibliography. 



56 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

had only been the work of a writer with an already established 
reputation, would have been celebrated far and wide.^ As a 
matter of fact, Brissot's writings at best were comparatively 
little known, and were it not for their relation to his subsequent 
important political career, they might remain forgotten. 

The reason for his failure as a writer is not far to seek. He 
was not original. What he said had, for the most part, been 
said before by such writers as Montesquieu and Rousseau, 
Diderot and Voltaire, Beccaria and Filangieri. Moreover, it 
had been said more effectively. The trouble with Brissot was 
that he was so absorbingly interested in knowledge for its own 
sake that he did not realize the necessity of clothing it in 
pleasing garb. He had a prodigious memory for all that he 
read ^ and so keen a relish for information as such that he 
sometimes forgot "that there is nothing so bete as a fact." His 
constant impulse to popularize knowledge, and to teach others 
what he had just learned himself, would, as M. Aulard re- 
marks, have been pedantic if it had not been so generous and 
disinterested. But he was always in too much haste to popu- 
larize to pay sufficient attention to form. To quote M. Aulard 
again : " What Brissot lacks as a writer is style. . . . He is clear 
and fluent, but his pen runs along without any attention to 
form, his only care being to get down all he has to say." ^ At 
the same time his writing is simple and direct, but he was lack- 
ing in a light touch, the ability to make an abstruse subject 
attractive; and, moreover, he had absolutely no sense of humor. 
In one or two of his early works he made use of sarcasm, but 
he soon realized that sarcasm was not his forte, and abandoned 
it. His work, further, is unrelieved by imagery or imagination. 
Although he was sentimental to a degree, one can hardly con- 
ceive of him as a writer of real poetry. When roused by great 
emotion, his writing became forceful, but ordinarily it lacked 
force, for the same reason that it lacked finish. 

But, although Brissot's writing is not of great importance 

1 Petion, Notice sur Brissot, Vatel, n, 224-34. * Ibid., ii, 222. 

^ Aulard, Les Orateurs de la legislative, i, 223, 227-28. 



AUTHOR AND JOURNALIST 57 

as literature, in connection with his future career it is of the 
greatest importance. It shows, as has been seen, the interests 
of a reformer. It also shows a reformer who, on httle provoca- 
tion, would become a revolutionist. In the first place, he was 
tremendously in earnest. That he had a mission he did not 
doubt, nor did he lack a prophet's confidence in its righteousness. 
His Bihliotheque philosophique, to take but a single example, 
was to be useful to his own age and useful to posterity. In the 
variety of his interests and in his unceasing efforts for reform 
of all kinds, he suggests Benjamin Franklin, but unlike Frank- 
lin, he had not the vestige of a sense of humor, and took all the 
world, including himself, with profound seriousness. As a con- 
sequence, he was often unable to put himself in the place of 
others, and so did not come to an understanding of the men 
with whom he had to deal. But even men with whom he failed 
to make connections and who were inclined to mock at his 
seriousness could not help but admire his enthusiasm, even 
when it seemed to them misplaced to the point of absurdity. 
This enthusiasm was not always disinterested. He was 
intensely ambitious for himself, as well as for his cause, and in 
whatever else he was lacking he did not lack belief in his own 
powers. From very early childhood he made large plans and 
was possessed of abundant confidence to carry them out. Noth- 
ing could daunt him. He was ready to write on the most ab- 
struse subjects. While his companions were painfully strug- 
gling with the rudiments of a foreign language, or striving to 
master the elements of legal studies, or enjoying plays in their 
native tongue, Brissot was working out a theory of all the lan- 
guages of Europe, writing treatises on canon law,^ and laying 
plans for a theater for foreign plays. ^ Witness, too, his schemes 
for all-inclusive philosophical dictionaries, for international 
societies and universal brotherhoods, not to mention his temer- 
ity in bringing them to the attention of the most distinguished 
men of his time. With this ambition went an indefatigable 
perseverance. His faith in his ultimate success was such that 
^ Seep. 7. * See p. 11. 



58 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

nothing could discourage him. If one distinguished critic dis- 
approved of his work, he submitted it to another; if one edition 
of a book were suppressed, he prepared a second; if his cher- 
ished plans for a newspaper did not meet with a ready wel- 
come, he sought new friends and began again. 

His optimism equaled his ambition and his perseverance, 
with the result that he often undertook impossible schemes. 
He established newspapers for which there was no demand, he 
entered into unwise business arrangements for the publication 
of his works, and on the strength of the slightest encourage- 
ment he embarked with a light heart on undertakings from 
which more cautious people would have shrunk in dismay. 
With the same breath in which he expressed contempt for those 
vain persons who thought they could compile dictionaries and 
edit newspapers, he had the temerity to annoiuice a dictionary 
and a newspaper of his own, in supreme confidence that he 
could succeed where others had failed.^ 

These qualities account both for Brissot's success and for 
his failure. It needs no prophet's vision to see in his earnest- 
ness, ambition, and optimism a leader in the approaching 
Revolution. But the defects of those very qualities — the 
over-seriousness, the stubbornness which would not abandon a 
hopeless scheme, and the optimism which would not see in- 
surmountable obstacles — explain also why his career finally 
ended in failure. 

» De la VSritS, 142-43. 



CHAPTER IV 

brissot's travels in the united states 

Among his many and varied interests no subject had for 
Brissot a greater charm than the United States. It epito- 
mized for him the Hberty and democracy which he had longed 
for in France, and furnished the ideal toward which he hoped 
to see France progress. In pursuance of this ideal he was al- 
ways referring in his writings to American example as a model, 
not only for France, but for all Europe. 

Works dealing with America had, therefore, a special fas- 
cination for him. This was particularly true of Crevecceur's 
Letters of an American Farmer.^ Crevecoeur, like Brissot, was 
an admirer of America; and after reading his book Brissot felt 
sure that he had found a congenial spirit and hastened to make 
his acquaintance. It was Crevecceur's criticism of slavery and 
his appreciation of the Quakers which especially won Brissot's 
heart; and when shortly afterward, the Marquis de Chastellux, 
in his Voyages dans VAmerique septentrionale, ventured to ex- 
press opinions not altogether favorable to the negroes and the 
Quakers, Brissot seized the cudgels in defense of Crevecoeur 
and rushed into the arena with more zeal than discretion. His 
weapon was a pamphlet which he called an Examen critique,^ 
in which he compared Chastellux most unfavorably with Creve- 
coeur, and boasted of his friendship with the latter.' Chastel- 
lux's book, Brissot declared, contained poison, for he had had 

^ Published in London early in 1782, and in France in 1784, under the title 
of Lettres d'un cultivateur americain. Saint-John de Crevecoeur, by R. de 
Crevecoeur, 295-96. 

^ Examen critique des voyages dans VAmirique septentrionale de M. le Marquis 
de Chastellux, ou Lettre d, M. le Marquis de Chastellux dans laquelle on refute 
principalement ses opinions sur les Quakers, sur les negres, sur le peuple et sur 
Vhomme. 

* Saint-John de Crevecoeur, by R. de Crevecceur. 



60 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the audacity to assert that the Quakers were guilty of Jesuit- 
ism, were indifferent to the pubhc good, and were averse to 
shedding blood; though when it came to commercial profit they 
were ready enough to sell provisions at a high price, to foe as 
well as to friend. In answer Brissot maintained that Chastel- 
lux produced no evidence to substantiate his statements, and 
that he did not know what he was talking about. The com- 
parison with the Jesuits was most unfair, Brissot continued, 
since the Quakers did not try to exert authority, had no ambi- 
tion, and were decidedly tolerant. To furnish provisions to 
both Americans and English was not a crime, neither was it a 
crime to demand a good price for them. The Quakers had, 
moreover, a high standard of morality, and their religion was 
not, as Chastellux seemed to think, a subject for jest.^ As for 
their political ideas, Chastellux had asserted that they were 
indifferent to the public good. If by that, Brissot retorted, 
Chastellux meant that they were indifferent to the disputes of 
sovereigns, it might be true, but indifferent to the interests of 
humanity they certainly were not, as witness their work for 
the negroes. On this latter subject, too, Brissot differed from 
Chastellux, and took umbrage at his claim that the negroes had 
not the sensitiveness of the whites; they were equally sensitive, 
he maintained. Chastellux and he were once again in disagree- 
ment on the importance of the art of war. To pay it the atten- 
tion which Chastellux did, Brissot declared, was to favor aris- 
tocracy. This, indeed, was the root of the whole difficulty. 
Brissot and Crevecoeur in their attitude toward America were 
in sympathy with democracy, and Chastellux was not. But 
Crevecoeur was not willing to go as far as Brissot, and as Chas- 
tellux and Crevecoeur had common connections, Brissot's at- 
tack on Chastellux and defense of Crevecoeur put the latter 
in a very embarrassing position, and involved him in a contro- 
versy much against his will.^ 

^ Brissot admitted, however, it might be because Chastellux did not under- 
stand the English language that he found their service amusing. 
" * Saint-John de Crevecoeur, by R. de CreveccEur, 130, 162. See p. 70. Also 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 61 

Brissot's interest in the negroes and their protectors, the 
Quakers, as well as in the United States as a possible place 
for emigration, inspired him with an ardent desire to make a 
journey himself to the new world. One obstacle stood in the 
way, — he had no money. His first thought was to apply for 
a government position of some kind which would take him to 
America, He accordingly drafted a note to M. Cojonne, set- 
ting forth the desirability of collecting information about the 
new world which might be useful to France, and stating as his 
special qualifications for such a mission his researches on the 
relation of England to India, his numerous works published 
with a utilitarian purpose, and his acquaintance with the Eng- 
lish language and the English constitution.^ It is doubtful 
whether this application was ever sent. At all events, it came 
to naught. The idea then occurred to him of getting some sort 
of a private endowment. He knew several persons, he wrote, 
who might be willing to join together for this object, and in 
general for "all projects tending to favor liberty and the prog- 
ress of the light." To extend the connections of France in 
America would be the apparent object. ^ This frank avowal of 
his purpose made the scheme look very like an underhand at- 
tempt to further his own personal ends under the cloak of a 
public enterprise for the general good. And this would have 
been the case had he been working solely for his own interest, 
but though he may have had visions of wealth to be gained for 
himself through land speculation, the situation was saved by 
his firm conviction that in trying to bring about closer relations 
between France and the United States, he was working for the 
public good, and especially for the advancement of France. 

To this end he called in his friends, Claviere, Crevecoeur, 

and Bergasse, and in company with them organized a Gallo- 

Americaine society. As the society was to be universal in its 

Journal de Paris, November 16, 1786, where Philippe Mazzei, under the 
name of Ferri, defends Chastellux against the attacks of Brissot; and Nouveau 
Voyage de Brissot, u, 190. 

^ Draft of a letter to Colonne, April 4, 1786. Correspondance, 90-92. 

* Rough draft of a plan for a voyage to America, Correspondance, 92-93. 



62 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

scope, it was only fitting that there be no rehgious qualification 
required for membership in it, but that it be open to men of all 
faiths and creeds.^ "To be useful to both the old world and the 
new," Brissot wrote, in speaking of their aims, such "is the 
purpose of this society. Everything which is connected with 
this end is to be the object of its attention. It is to be composed 
of men of every country, of every profession, of every religion, 
provided they are capable of devoting themselves constantly 
and seriously to the good of humanity." ^ 

Their plans for universal good, irrespective of national dif- 
ferences, received a slight check from Philips,^ Brissot's English 
friend, to whom he had written asking for information on the 
state of English commerce. In reply Philips wrote that while 
he could answer most of Brissot's questions, he gave him fair 
warning that he himself was too good an Englishman to sacri- 
fice the interests of his country to friendship, and that, in con- 
sequence, he would undertake nothing which might tend to di- 
minish English commerce.^ Not at all daunted by this rebuff, 
they continued their plans. Persons possessed of ideas or 
information useful to them were to be sought out; English 
and American newspapers were to be secured, and the society 
in seeking the good of France was to devote itself not only to 
furthering the external relations of France, but also to improv- 
ing its moral and economic condition within. It would be ill- 
advised, however, they decided, to speak too freely of their 
larger purpose. In their prospectus, therefore, they announced 
the society as an organization for the dissemination of informa- 
tion concerning France and the United States, with a view 
to promoting closer commercial relations between them. The 
membership was to be limited, consisting of twelve persons in 
Paris, twenty-four in the provinces, the same number in the 
United States, and of an indefinite number in other foreign 

^ Proces-verbanx de la SocieU Gallo-AmSricaine. Correspondance, 111. 
2 De la France (edition of 1791), 409, note. 

* James Philips, an English Quaker and bookseller with whom Brissot was 
on terms of friendship. 

* Correspondance, 107. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 63 

countries. For admission to resident membership a unanimous 
vote was necessary. Quality, rather than quantity, was thus 
emphasized, perhaps with a further idea of making the society 
attractive by reason of its exclusiveness. Although the mem- 
bers among themselves may have cherished large schemes for 
the universal good, their discussions were of a decidedly prac- 
tical character. Brissot, for instance, presented a memoir 
drawn up by a member of the Royal Agricultural Society, 
giving a list of trees indigenous to America, which might, with 
profit, be naturalized in France. In turn he proposed to bene- 
fit America by introducing a new French process for the cheaper 
manufacture of paper. ^ The work of the society at home was 
soon somewhat interrupted by the departure of Crevecoeur for 
New York, where he went to take up his work as Consul of 
France. It was an opportunity, however, for the extension of 
the influence of the society in America, and Crevecoeur set out 
charged with the mission of spreading abroad news of its prin- 
ciples and purpose.^ 

As one contribution to this immediate end, that of establish- 
ing better commercial relations between France and the United 
States, Brissot had undertaken to write a book dealing with 
economic conditions in the two countries. That there was 
great need of such a book he was convinced.^ He was equally 
convinced, at least at first, of his own ability to meet that 
need; but soon finding the task rather too much for him, he 
sought and secured the cooperation of Claviere, This work, 
De la France et des J^tats Unis, was therefore published under 
their joint names.* 

* Proces-verbaux de la SociStS Gallo-AmSricaine. Correspondance, 103-36. 
2 Ibid., 134-36. 

' As one excuse for his work, Brissot quoted a remark of Thomas Paine: 
" Je remarquerai que je nai fas encore vu une dSscription de VAmSrique faite en 
Europe sur lefidMitS de laquelle on puisse compter." De la France, 7. 

* De la France et des Etats Unis, on de Vimportance de la rivolution de I'AmSr- 
ique pour le bonheur de la France ; des rapports de ce royaume et des Etats Unis, 
des avantages rSdproques qu'ils peuvent retirer de leurs liaisons de commerce, et 
enfin de la situation actuelle des Etats-Unis. See p. 90. 

The title-page contains the following passage from a speech of Lafayette to 



64 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The argument — already referred to in connection with 
Brissot's writings — was developed with care, and was sup- 
ported by much material drawn from documentary sources. 
It was as follows: France can derive much profit from the 
American Revolution, in the first place because that revolution 
has increased human knowledge and furthered the reform of 
social prejudices ; and in the second place, because it has made 
people see the value of commerce. England is most alive to the 
latter point and is now bestirring herself to develop commercial 
relations with the United States. England is better informed 
on the subject than France, owing to the better understanding 
there of the theoretical science of commerce, and to the free- 
dom of the press. ^ France also ought to bestir herseK, but in 
the first place her ignorance must be dissipated. 

Having thus sketched the end to be attained, Brissot and 
Claviere then proceeded to lay down general principles of com- 
mercial relations. Direct commerce, they argued, is better than 
indirect, and cheaper; mutual interest is the surest means of 
sustaining commerce between two nations; the prosperity of a 
nation does not consist in a cash balance in its favor; metals 
are not real riches; the only way of estimating correctly the 
increase of commerce is by the increase of the population. 

Mutual interest, they continued, that most important fac- 
tor in developing commerce, exists between France and the 
United States. France needs new markets in which to dispose 
of her superfluous productions, to encourage her manufactures, 
and to employ labor. Commerce with the United States would 
tend to better conditions in France, and moreover, all is ripe 
for it, for just as France needs a market for her manufactured 

the American Congress: " Le passe assure V alliance de la France avec les Etats- 
Unis, Vavenir ne fait quagrandir la perspective, et Von terra se multiplier ces 
rapports qu'un commerce ind^pendant et avantageux doit produire, en raison de 
ce quil est mieux connu." 

The work is dedicated to the American Congress and the friends of the 
United States in both hemispheres. 

^ In this work Brissot made frequent comparisons between England and 
France, to the disadvantage of the latter. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 65 

articles, the United States needs those articles. As a new coun- 
try, the latter must first develop her agriculture and de- 
pend on Europe for manufactured goods. At the same time, 
she can furnish in exchange her own raw products. 

Among the things which she can obtain from France are 
wine, brandy, oil, olives, dried fruits, cloth, linens, silks, ribbons, 
and hats. France, on the other hand, needs the raw products 
of America, such as tobacco,^ fish, whale oil, candles, grain, 
and materials for shipbuilding. All this commerce, Brissot and 
Claviere held, should be encouraged to the greatest possible 
extent; the old idea of maintaining a balance of trade was 
absurd and erroneous. Moreover, — and this was a pivotal 
point of their thesis, — there should be the least possible inter- 
ference with trade on the part of the government. Freedom, not 
protection, was the law of nature. "It is a misfortune," they 
wrote, "that the United States was not able from the start to 
adopt so noble a system; that in order to pay the public debt, 
they were forced to have recourse to this miserable system 
of ancient governments — to tax foreign merchandise. Every 
other tax except that upon the soil is a source of error. It is in 
consequence of such errors that there has arisen in Europe that 
system of protective duties for national industry, whose effect 
is to mislead governments till they are persuaded that they 
have in their hands a creative force equal to that of the 
Almighty." 2 

Finally, they declared, there is no reason to hesitate to em- 
bark on this commerce on account of the condition of the 
United States. Despite reports to the contrary, it is by no 
means in a desperate condition. There is no anarchy; the war 
with the Indians will not last; the troubles over paper money 
are but local. There is, therefore, every reason why France 

^ Brissot here deals with the government monopoly of tobacco. He would 
have this removed, and would favor a plan proposed by Lafayette, by which 
leaf tobacco, coming into the country, would be subject only to a very moder- 
ate duty. Then if it were desirable, a further sum might be paid for permission 
to manufacture and sell. 

2 De la France, 293. 



66 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

should profit by her opportunity, and, to the utmost extent of 
her ability, develop commercial relations with the United States. ^ 
The investigations in which Brissot had engaged in order 
to write this work only increased his longing to make a journey 
to the new world, in order to see for himself the conditions 
which he had been describing. About a year after its publica- 
tion the longed-for opportunity came, not through the govern- 
ment, as he had at first hoped, but through his friend Claviere, 
who, with two other gentlemen, had entered into an agree- 
ment to speculate in the American debt.^ Some one was needed 
to go to America to investigate the matter, and Brissot was 
precisely the man they wanted. He was already in corre- 
spondence with the chief authors of the American Revolution; 
he was well informed on conditions in America, and he was 
deeply interested in the financial situation.^ He was accord- 
ingly offered the chance, and he eagerly seized it.* Mr. Daniel 
Parker, who was connected with the operations of the Ameri- 
can speculators, William Duer and Andrew Craigie, and who 
seems to have been back of the whole proceeding, wrote to the 
latter, in Brissot's behalf, and pointed out that in addition to 
Brissot's other qualifications, the fact of his having been known 
as a literary man would make him a safe agent as he would not 
be suspected of any financial schemes.^ 

^ A contemporary criticism from an English point of view is of interest. It 
is from the Monthly Review, lxxvi, 593. "Messrs. Claviere and De Warville 
are spirited writers, but sometimes they are too violent. The ardor of liberty 
is liable to break out into the flame of licentiousness, unless restrained by the 
superior judgment of calm and unbiased reasoners. The authors are justly en- 
titled to the united thanks of the French and the Americans; for they have 
plainly shown the mutual advantages that may accrue from a commercial 
intercourse between the two nations; and they have, at the same time, given 
a just view of a foreign trade and the benefits thence arising." 

^ The names of the two gentlemen were Stadinski and Cazenove, — the 
latter an Amsterdam banker. Correspondance, 179. 

^ For a letter to Jefferson making inquiries as to the public debt, see 
Appendix A. 

* Petion, Notice, in Vatel, Charlotte Cor day et les Girondins, ii, 236. 

* Parker to Andrew Craigie, June 2, 1788, Craigie Papers, American Anti- 
quarian Society. See Appendix A. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 67 

His contract provided that he was to start at the earliest 
possible moment, and on his arrival at New York he was to 
seek information on the following points: first, the present 
total of the domestic debt of Congress; second, the price at 
which contracts for that debt are sold; third, what are the best 
contracts; fourth, the way in which the interest is paid; fifth, 
the probable date of reimbursement; sixth, events in the 
United States — such, for example, as the ratification by the 
states of the new plan for a federal system — which might affect 
the stability of the debt; seventh, the debts of each of the 
states. As soon as he secured any useful information, he was 
to inform each of the three men respectively, and he was, 
moreover, not to give to any one else such information as might 
lead to rival speculation. On the other hand, Claviere, Caz- 
enove, and Stadinski agreed to pay Brissot ten thousand livres 
for the expenses of his journey and investigations, and to give 
him besides a commission on their purchase in American funds. ^ 

This was to Brissot a heaven-sent opportunity. Though 
commissioned to study financial conditions, he now had the 
chance which he had long sought, to investigate the state of 
the negroes and to make connections between their bene- 
factors, the Quakers, and the society of the Amis des Noirs, 
which he had just established in Paris ; ^ and incidentally, per- 
haps, to substantiate his arguments against Chastellux. 

In the second placed he wished to investigate the country as 
a possible place of settlement. He was thoroughly weary of the 

^ Contrat de Brissot avec Claviere, Cazenove, et Stadinski, pour sa mission 
aux tltats Unis. Correspondance, 179-81. 

According to Petion, he asked only that his expenses be paid. Notice sur 
Brissot, Vatel, ii, 236. 

Brissot evidently took every means to inform himself on financial questions, 
as is evident by a rough draft of a questionnaire on matters pertaining to the 
debt of the United States. It consists chiefly of answers to questions previously 
propounded. Correspondance, 181-84. Similar notes, questions, and answers, 
including a list of questions proposSes par M. Stadinski, are found in an inter- 
esting collection of Brissot's papers loaned to the writer by M. Charles Vellay, 
of Paris. 

* See p. 184; M6moires, ii, 74. 



68 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

limitations imposed by despotism, and had formed a tenta- 
tive plan with some of his friends, to emigrate to America. 
Brissot had a good deal of the frontiersman in his make-up, 
and the prospect of establishing a permanent home for him- 
self on the borders of civilization appealed to his adventurous 
disposition. Before embarking on such an enterprise, however, 
some preliminary investigation was desirable. This Brissot 
now proposed to make.^ He not only had a general plan, but 
was incidentally considering certain definite places as feasible 
for settlement, as is evident from the character of the informa- 
tion he was seeking. These, for instance, are some of the ques- 
tions which he noted: "What kind of goods would one need to 
bring from France for family use.?" "What part of the terri- 
tory of the Mohawks is the best? " " Would it not be better to 
be somewhere along the Hudson.'*" "Would there be any 
hope" — and here crops up Brissot's never-ceasing desire to 
take part in public affairs — "for a Frenchman who settled 
there, of being elected to the county assemblies?" "What is 
the cost of the passage from France to New York for each per- 
son, — for a child?" 2 A third motive — one which at the 
time he naturally said less about — was to learn in America 
the means of bringing about a like revolution in France.^ 

For this task of investigating American conditions Brissot 
was well fitted. He had a fair knowledge of the language of the 
country; he was already in correspondence with some of its 
most famous men; * he had valuable letters of introduction; ^ 
and, moreover, he was possessed of considerable reputation as 
a writer on America — all of which gave him an unusual chance 

^ RSponse a tous les libeUistes, 25. See also RSplique de J. P. Brissot a Stanis- 
las Clermont, 9. 

^ This is a part of the same questionnaire in which financial matters are dis- 
cussed. Correspondance, 184-86. Similar lists of questions on agricultural life 
in the United States are found in M. Vellay's collection, referred to above. 

^ Pro jet de defense, Memoir es, ii, 275. 

* For instance, announcement is made in the Charavay Catalogue of 1858, of 
sixty-five letters addressed to Brissot by Americans. Correspondance, aver- 
tissement, 11. See Bibliography. 

* Lafayette gave him a letter to Washington. Correspondance, 192. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 69 

to increase his acquaintance and to acquire further knowledge. 
He was, therefore, no casual traveler, jotting down what- 
ever happened to strike his passing fancy. In his own opinion 
there were three requisites for the traveler whose journeyings 
were to be useful to others : he must be well informed regarding 
the country he is to visit; secondly, — to quote Brissot's own 
words, — he must have a " plan of observation " ; and, thirdly, 
he must not be content with a superficial view, but must make 
a thorough investigation for himself.^ All three of these re- 
quirements Brissot met fairly well. In preparation for his 
work, De la France, he had used all the books on the subject 
on which he could lay his hands; as for a "plan of observa- 
tion," he was ready with a definite outline of points to be 
observed; and finally, his stay in America, although cut short 
by the beginning of the Revolution in France, was of suffi- 
cient length for him to make observations of thoroughness. 
Between his arrival in Boston in July, 1788, and his departure 
from America, at the end of the same year,^ he traveled from 
Boston to Virginia,^ visited numerous educational and phil- 
anthropic institutions, saw something of the workings of the 
government, and made the acquaintance of many men of note. 
Among these were John Adams; General Heath; General Han- 
cock, Governor of Massachusetts; James Madison; Hamilton; 
Warren Mifilin; Colonel Duer; Griffin, the President of Con- 
gress; Franklin; Temple Franklin, his grandson; Miers Fisher; 
Crevecoeur; De Moustier, the French ambassador; and Gen- 
eral Washington.* 

1 Novveau Voyage, preface, xxxvi. ^ See p. 85 and note. 

3 From the dates of his letters and other evidence, the following itinerary 
may be given: July 24 at Boston; from thence by way of Cambridge, Spencer, 
Brookfield, Springfield, Hartford, Wethersfield, Middletown, New Haven, 
Fairfield, Rye, New Rochelle, to New York, August 9. From New York, Aug- 
ust 25, by way of Newark, Trenton, Bristol, to Philadelphia. By October 2 he 
was back in Boston. From there he visited Salem, Beverly, Newburyport, 
Portsmouth, and Andover. October 12, he left Boston for Providence, whence 
he went by boat to New York, and thence to Philadelphia, Chester, Wilming- 
ton, and Mount Vernon. 

* Nouveau Voyage, i, 147-52, 242-48, 268, 281, 312; ii, 250. 



70 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Despite his advantages of language, information, wide in- 
terest, an extended acquaintance,^ and the means of increasing 
it, Brissot nevertheless lacked one essential requisite for reach- 
ing sound conclusions concerning what he heard and saw. He 
was already prejudiced in favor of American institutions. To 
him America was the seat of liberty and the home of freedom, 
and it was extremely difficult for him to see anything but good 
in her customs and institutions. Moreover, having set forth 
in print views favorable to America, he was naturally anxious 
to substantiate his preconceived idea. To such an extent was 
this the case that, when certain foreign consuls who had lived 
in America for some time attempted to point out to him 
weaknesses and dangers in American life, he refused to credit 
their statements or to listen to their opinions.^ It is to be 
remembered, too, that interest in furthering emigration to 
America led him to look on the situation with a favorable eye.' 

But although Brissot observed to prove a thesis and wrote 
to set an example, he was never insincere, and always endeav- 
ored to set down conditions as he saw them. He usually saw 
them, however, in a rosy light. From the American point of 
view, this bias of Brissot's is not without compensation. The 
time of his journey was just at the end of the government 
under the Articles of Confederation; the new constitution had 
been drawn up and its fate was now hanging in the balance. 
The period was, in truth, a critical one in the history of the 

' With but two exceptions Brissot seems to have been received everywhere 
with the utmost cordiality. These two exceptions were the French ambassador, 
M. De Moustier, and, strange as it may seem, Crevecoeur. See Saint-John de 
Crevecaeur, by R. de Crevecoeur, 162, note. As to the latter, we have only the 
details given by Brissot himself. Brissot says in his Memoires (ii, 50) that 
Crevecoeur barely received him, kept him only one night, and gave him no 
introductions. This seems strange in view of their recent friendly relations 
in the SocietS Gallo-Americaine. Brissot says it was because Crevecoeur was 
dependent on the ambassador De Moustier. But the Voyage contains at least 
twenty times the praise of Crevecoeur, who must have aided him. Perhaps the 
account in the memoirs is colored by later events. 

^ Nouveau Voyage, preface, xxxix. 

' See p. 88, note, for a criticism of his account of the Scioto Company as 
being too favorable for one interested in it. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 71 

United States, but the judgment of a man who saw in these 
conditions, not a comparison with earlier prosperity and later 
stable government, but a contrast with far worse conditions in 
France, served to show wherein those years, even at the worst, 
held hope for the future. 

In the spring of 1788 Brissot set out for this new country, 
sailing from Havre on the Cato.^ It was characteristic of his 
insatiable thirst for information, and of his desire to spread it 
abroad, that just before starting he should write an account 
of the country through which he had passed on his way, and 
of the city of Havre. Finally, on June 3, he sailed away on his 
voyage of discovery, pessimistic for the land which he was 
leaving, but full of enthusiasm for the future of America, and 
for his possible part in it. His experience on the sea was the 
common one of having moments of regret that he had ever 
left dry land, but he soon recovered his usual health and spirits, 
and also his characteristic interest in every new detail of his 
surroundings : the kind of food served, where it was obtained, 
the life of the sailors, and the fishing vessels they met. Much 
of his time was naturally devoted to reading and studying 
English. One outcome was a theory — a not unusual result 
with Brissot — that in order to bring different peoples nearer 
together, an effort ought to be made to produce a greater sim- 
ilarity in their languages, by incorporating the terms and 
phraseology of one in 'the other.- 

Finally, after a voyage of fifty -one days, Brissot arrived at 
Boston, the 24th of July. It was to him a moment of supreme 
happiness. He was fleeing from despotism, and was about to 
enjoy the life of a people who were in the actual possession of 
that liberty and equality which everywhere else was regarded 
as a chimera. He was especially delighted to find himself in 
Boston, the first city to throw off the yoke of the English. He 
was charmed, he declared, to see how different it was from the 

' Craigie to D. Parker, July 27, 1788. Craigie Papers, American Anti- 
quarian Society. /" 
' Nouveau Voyage, i, 91-108. ' 



72 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE: 

disagreeable, noisy whirlpool of Paris. He was especially im- 
pressed with the absence of that restless, busy seeking for 
pleasure which characterized his fellow countrymen; and "of 
that proud and haughty air of the Englishman." "Here was 
simplicity, goodness, and that dignity of man which is the pos- 
session of those who realize their liberty and who see in their 
fellow men only brothers and equals." ^ 

He did not, however, allow the delightful novelty of his new 
surroundings to distract him from the business of the important 
commissions with which he was entrusted, and without delay 
he made connections with Andrew Craigie and other specula- 
tors to whom he had been especially commended.^ They were 
only too ready to follow Parker's suggestion in his note of in- 
troduction,^ and pay Brissot every attention, as it was with his 
assistance that they hoped to carry through a scheme of " great 
magnitude."^ This scheme, the two parts of which were 
closely connected, consisted in a speculation in the American 
debt and in western lands, and the assistance of European 
agents was indispensable. They accordingly made much of 
Brissot. Indeed, their fear that he might be made use of by 
some one else, hastened the development of their plans,^ while 
Brissot on his side was anxious to further profitable invest- 
ments for his friends at home. The result of their common 
interests and ambitious undertakings was a contract, dated 
October, 1788, which reads in part as follows : — 

Articles of Agreement entered into and fully agreed upon betwixt 
J. Peter Brissot de Warville for himself and Stephen Claviere of the 
Kingdom of France, and William Duer,® and Andrew Craigie of the 
State of New York, viz. : 

The parties mutually agree and covenant with each other to use 

1 Nouveau Voyage, i, 110-11. 

'^ Craigie to D. Parker, July 27, 1788. Craigie Papers, American Antiqua- 
rian Society. 

3 See above, p. 66. ^ * Duer to D. Parker, November 5, 1788. Ibid. 

^ Craigie to D. Parker, December 3, 1788. Ibid. See Appendix A. 

* William Duer was born in England, In 1747. After serving with Clive in 
India, he gave up army life. Coming to New York on business, he settled there, 
and took the part of the colonists in the Revolutionary War. He was known as 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 73 

their best exertions to form an association whose object of negotia- 
tion [sic] shall be as follows : 

To obtain from the Court of France a transfer of the debt due to 
that crown from the United States; 

To get such transfer ratified by the United States; and to obtain 
such a convention for the payment of the principal and interest due 
thereon, as shall be judged most advisable by the parties interested in 
the transfer; 

To purchase from time to time as large a proportion of the -do- 
mestic debt of the United States as they shall be able to procure, and 
on such terms as shall be agreed upon by the Company, or the parties 
interested in their behalf, to manage such speculation; 

To obtain such loans of money as may hereafter be judged neces- 
sary by Congress, to enable them to pay the interest of their debt, 
foreign and domestic, and to discharge the other exigencies of the 
Union.^ 

It was further agreed that Mr. Daniel Parker should be 
authorized to accede to the agreement on the same terms as the 
subscribing parties. With the other plans of Craigie and Duer 
— the Scioto land speculation ^ — Brissot was not so immedi- 
ately connected, and the carrying out of his part of the specu- 
lation in the debt he had to defer till his return to France. 

Meantime, his personal interest in the development of the 
United States could not but be increased. One of the first 
things that struck him was the spirit of tolerance which pre- 
vailed. Judging from the Lettres d'un cultivateur americain, 
he had expected a "ferocious Presbyterianism," and was sur- 
prised to find, instead, a wide tolerance in practice, and little 
reference to dogma in the pulpit. 

In their manner of life, especially in their picnics and their 
tea-drinkings, the Americans seemed to him to resemble the 
English.^ Another thing which struck him was a growing spirit 
of commercial rivalry with England. It was this spirit which 

a bold speculator and successful financier. After the resignation of Robert 
Morris as superintendent of finance, he became secretary of the treasury board. 
(See Belote, The Scioto Speculation, 14, note.) 

* Correspondance, 208, 212. See also the Craigie Papers, American Anti- 
quarian Society. 

^ See p. 85. » Nouveau Voyage, i, 112-16; 123-29. 



74 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

was leading to so rapid a development of manufactures of all 
kinds. But he also remarked, as a natural corollary, in a coun- 
try devoted chiefly to commerce, that the sciences had not 
reached a very high degree of development. Exception to the 
absence of intellectual life he found, however, at Cambridge, 
and with all that he saw there he was delighted — the quiet 
peace of the place, its proximity to Boston, the type of presi- 
dent and professors of Harvard, its library and equipment.^ 

With the men whom he met he was also much pleased, and 
especially with the simplicity in which they lived. To see men 
who had played a distinguished part in the American Revolu- 
tion pursuing the occupation of farmers, seems to have caused 
him a momentary surprise, but he was none the less delighted 
that so simple a life was adopted by the nation's leaders. He 
was especially impressed with John Adams, as an example of 
a statesman who had returned to his plow from the court of 
kings. "I have seen Adams," he wrote, "occupied in the culti- 
vation of his farm, forgetting the role which he played when he 
trampled under foot the pride of his king, that king who had 
set a price upon his head, and who was forced to receive him 
as ambassador from a free country. Such, surely," he added, 
rising to a comparison with classic times, "were the generals 
and ambassadors of the glorious epochs of Rome and Greece; 
such were Epaminondas, Fabius and Cincinnatus." Holding 
such an exalted opinion of Adams, he was distressed to find 
that he did not have great faith in the possibility of much 
liberty in France. "He does not even believe," Brissot adds 
sorrowfully, "that we have the right, according to our old 
States-General, of asking that no tax be laid without the con- 
sent of the people." ^ 

But whatever view Adams might hold of the possibilities 
of a republican form of government for other nations, Brissot 
was ready to admit that Adams himself was a fine example of 
republican virtues. Nor was he the only notable example of 
such virtues. Brissot was also much impressed by General 
1 Nouveau Voyage, i, 130-36. « Ibid., i, 146-47. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 75 

Heath, Samuel Adams, and Hancock, the Governor of Mas- 
sachusetts. "General Heath was one of those worthy imita- 
tors of the Roman Cincinnatus; for he does not like the Ameri- 
can Cincinnati; their eagle seemed to him a gew-gaw, suitable 
only for children. . . . With what joy did this respected man 
show me all parts of his farm ! What happiness he enjoyed there ! 
He was a true farmer, ... A glass of cider, which he presented 
to me in the spirit of good comradeship, seemed to me superior 
to the most exquisite wines." ^ Of Samuel Adams he said: 
"He has the republican virtues to an unusual degree, im- 
peccable uprightness, simplicity, modesty, and above all, 
severity ; he is unwilling to have any capitulation with abuses. 
He fears the despotism of virtue and ability as much as the 
despotism of vice. In spite of his love and respect for Wash- 
ington, he voted to deprive him of his command at the end of a 
certain time."^ In General Hancock, Brissot found another 
example of courage, patriotism, and democracy. This sim- 
plicity Brissot perceived was common to the people at large. 
It seemed to him the very basis of their high standard of 
morality, and he was never weary of calling attention to its 
various manifestations. The secret of this general high standard 
of morality, he, in common with Rousseau, attributed to a 
rural life,^ and as substantiating his belief, he adduced the fact 
that nine tenths of the Americans lived in the country.* 

After a stay of some two weeks in Boston and vicinity, Bris- 
sot set out for New York and Philadelphia. The journey from 
Boston to New York was accomplished in four days, but at the 
expense of a four o'clock start each morning.^ The inconven- 
iences of travel appeared to Brissot slight, however, in com- 
parison with those of France. If the roads left much to be de- 
sired, the stage coaches seemed to him infinitely superior to 

^ Nouveau Voyage, i, 150. ^ Ibid., i, 152. 

^ Ibid., Preface, xii. But see p. 83, where he attributes this high standard 
of morality to liberty. 

* He excepted, however, the plantation life of the South, on account of the 
inequalities inseparably connected with slavery. 

6 Ibid., I, 157. 



76 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the lumbering diligences of his own country. Moreover, the 
absence of any class distinctions between travelers delighted 
him beyond measure. "These carriages," he explains, "keep 
up the idea of equality. The member of Congress is placed by 
the side of the shoemaker who elected him; they fraternize and 
chat together. You see no person here taking upon himself 
those important airs which you too often meet with in France. 
In that country, for instance, a gentleman would blush to 
travel in a diligence; it is a common carriage; you never know 
with whom you may be thrown. . . . The artisan or the laborer 
who finds himself in any one of these stages with a gentleman, 
keeps still and attends to his own business, or, if he does take 
part in the conversation, he does his best to rise to the level 
of others." ^ At the inns, too, Brissot was pleased with the 
spirit of good-comjadeship which existed between the tavern 
keepers and their guests, and by the absence of the spirit of 
servility, evidenced by the fact that the servants did not 
expect fees. 

The contrast between American women and French women 
also greatly impressed him. On this subject Brissot, like every 
Frenchman, before or after him, who has come to America, 
had much to say. Like every Frenchman, too, he was struck 
with the freedom with which American women went about 
unattended. He often met them driving or riding alone on the 
country roads, and was constantly surprised that their doing 
so was taken as a matter of course, and provoked no comment 
or criticism. It argued well, he thought, both for the safety of 
the roads and the morals of the community. Wherever he went 
he was impressed with their freedom and lack of affectation 
— a forcible contrast to the manners of women in France.^ 

He noted with pain, however, beginnings of what he con- 
sidered old-world luxury and formality. This was particularly 
true of New York, where the dress of the women, the elegant 
equipages and the luxm-ious tables betokened a growing taste 
for display. 3 The introduction of carpets, which, he com- 

1 Nouveau Voyage, i, 234-56. " Ibid., i, 183; see also 113, 255. ^ Ibid., i, 231. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 77 

plained, was due to English influence/ was one of the luxuries 
which he deplored. The increasing study of music also gave 
him concern, and he uttered a pious wish that the women of 
Boston might never be taken with the malady of desiring per- 
fection in the musical art,^ The prevalent use of the cigar dis- 
gusted him, though he thought that it had the advantage of 
assisting reflection by interfering with the smoker's immediate 
response to queries or arguments. 

After the luxury of New York, it was a great relief to Brissot 
to visit the Quakers in Pennsylvania, among whom simplicity 
still reigned. He had solemnly espoused their cause, against 
the aspersions of Chastellux, and through their common inter- 
est in the slave trade, had made connections with some of their 
members. He naturally met a very cordial reception, and had 
the opportunity of seeing, at first hand, their mode of life, and 
of visiting various charitable institutions under their control. 
All that he saw only served to corroborate his former opinions, 
and in describing their virtues, he never missed the chance to 
give a fling at Chastellux, and to hold up his attitude to ridi- 
cule. Discussing two of their chief peculiarities, their refusal 
to take an oath and to bear arms, he declared that their ob- 
jection to an oath was no indication of a wish to escape re- 
sponsibility for their actions. He could wish, however, that 
since the war of the colonies against Great Britain was justi- 
fied by that divine principle which authorizes resistance to 
oppression, they had seen fit to take part in it. But as they 
were consistent in their action, and as their neutrality did not 
mean a secret attachment to the British, he held that it was 
unjust to persecute them. It was their simplicity which most 
attracted him. He took pleasure in contrasting their worship 
with that to which he was accustomed; their life with that 
of the French. "What a difference," he writes, "between the 
simplicity of this and the pomp of the Catholic worship. 

^ For his aspersions on the English Brissot was sharply criticized in a 
review of the travels, in the Monthly Review for 1791, p. 531. 
* Nouveau Voyage, i, 112; ii, 80. 



78 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Reformation in all its stages has diminished its formalities. 
It is thus that human reason progresses towards perfection." ^ 
And again: "Simplicity, candour and good faith characterize 
the actions, as well as the discourses of the Quakers. They are 
not affected, but they are sincere; they are not polished but 
they are humane; they have not that wit — that sparkling wit 
— without which a man is nothing in France, and with which 
he is everything; but they have good sense, sound judgment, 
upright hearts and honest souls." ^ 

While at Philadelphia he also had the opportunity of visiting 
Franklin, for whom he had long cherished a profound admira- 
tion, and who seemed to him the very embodiment of all the 
virtues. "I have found in America," he wrote, "many en- 
lightened politicians, many virtuous men; but I have seen no 
one who appeared to me to possess in so high a degree as Frank- 
lin the characteristics of a true philosopher." ^ 

One reason for Brissot's keen interest in the Quakers was, as 
has been pointed out, their common enthusiasm in work for 
the abolition of the slave trade and of slavery. The societies 
formed by them seemed to him the most adequate agencies 
possible. Through his connection with the Amis des Noirs, in 
Paris, he was brought into relation with like societies in America, 
was everywhere received by them with cordiality, was shown 
every courtesy, and was elected an honorary member of several 
branches. The work which he saw accomplished in the growing 
sentiment against the slave trade, and in the North against 
slavery itself, encouraged him to hope for a like success on the 
part of his own society. In his enthusiasm he seems to have 
gone too far and to have displeased even the Quakers them- 
selves by the extravagance of his praise, while the Penn- 
sylvania Dutch, the Methodists, and others complained that 



^ Nouveau Voyage, i, 290. 

2 Ibid., II, 169. He followed the Quaker example of simplicity by leaving 
his hair unpowdered at a time when powder was the almost universal fashion. 
Quoted from Beaulieu, by Aulard, Orateurs de la legislative, i, 219. 

^ Nouveau Voyage, ii, 312. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 79 

they too had worked against slavery, and that to ascribe all 
efforts in behalf of the negro to the Quakers alone was most 
unjust.^ 

In addition to organized societies, Brissot had two other 
means to suggest which would tend towards the abolition of 
slavery: the substitution of maple sugar for the sugar cane, 
and the emigration of negroes to Africa. The first, he claimed, 
would do away with the necessity of slave labor, and would, in 
itself, be a profitable enterprise; the second would add greatly 
to the happiness of the negro. It would, in turn, be directly 
advantageous to commerce, for the African negroes would be 
civilized by contact with the colonists from America, and the 
civilization thus established would create new markets for 
Europe. 

He was most optimistic in regard to the capacity of the 
negro for civilization. The statement of Chastellux that "it 
is not only the slave who is beneath the master; it is the negro 
who is beneath the white man," he denied in toto, and as- 
serted on the contrary that the reason why the negro had not 
risen was not because he lacked ability, but because the white 
man kept him down. In order to substantiate this opinion, 
Brissot made throughout his trip a special study of the con- 
dition of the negro. He visited numerous schools for colored 
children, and was always delighted whenever he was able to 
cite marked instances of ability. As a further confirmation 
of his belief that the difficulty with the negro was not hered- 
ity, but environment, he noted the contrast between the free 
negroes of the North and the slaves of the South.* His feeling 
on this subject was so strong that it prevented a full enjoy- 
ment of that part of his journey which lay south of Mason and 
Dixon's line. Even his admiration for Washington was clouded 
by the realization that he was a slave-owner. Brissot, indeed, 
in the course of a visit to Mount Vernon, tried to convert 

^ See letter of November 28, 1791, to Brissot, apparently from Francis 
Dupont. Scioto Papers, New York Historical Society. 
^ Nouveau Voyage, ii, 34. 



80 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Washington to his own views. ^ Washington, however, while 
protesting his sympathy for the movement as a whole, main- 
tained that the time was not yet ripe in Virginia for radical 
action against slavery, to which Brissot retorted that he was 
mistaken, and that it would be a task worthy of Washington 
to begin the revolution and to prepare the way for emancipa- 
tion. He failed, however, to convince him that the moment 
was favorable for the formation of an anti-slavery society. ^ 

In all other respects Brissot greatly admired Washington. 
His was another example of the ideal private life of a great 
man. "You have heard him compared to Cincinnatus," Bris- 
sot wrote, "the comparison is well made. This celebrated gen- 
eral is nothing more at present than a good farmer, constantly 
occupied in the care of his farm, as he calls it, in improving the 
methods of farming, in building barns. . . . Everything has an 
air of simplicity in his home; his table is good, but there is 
no display, and everything in the domestic arrangements is 
well regulated. Mrs, Washington superintends the whole, and 
combines the qualities of an excellent farmer's wife with that 
simple dignity which ought to characterize a woman whose 
husband has acted the greatest part in the theater of human 
affairs." ^ 

In the general economic problems of the United States, as 
well as in the special problem of the negro, Brissot was deeply 
interested. The treatment of the Indian involved certain dif- 
ficulties, he admitted, but some of the trouble had been brought 
on, it seemed to him, by the whites, by their own conduct, and 
might have been avoided if all the whites in their dealings with 
the Indians had followed the example of the Quakers. The 
Indians might be led to accept European civilization, though 
it was, perhaps, not altogether desirable that they should; but 
at least with skill and forbearance on the part of the whites, 
more peaceable relations might be established.* 

Not only a general state of peace was to be looked for, but 

^ Brissot was indebted to Lafayette for a letter of introduction. See p. 68. 
2 Nouveau Voyage, ii, 44. ^ /tid., ii, 265-67. * Ibid., ii, 427-31. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 81 

commercial prosperity. Commerce with the East Indies was 
being developed and both imports and exports were increasing.'^ 
This seemed to Brissot a hopeful sign, particularly in its bear- 
ing on the ability of the Americans to pay their debts. He was 
in fact much more ready to listen to the optimistic opinions of 
Adams as to the future of America than to the doubts of the 
French ambassador. It was, moreover, a favorable time for 
making a study of economic conditions. Western expansion 
was just beginning, and manufactures were springing up. Some- 
thing of the future development of the frontier, as well as of the 
geographical lines along which it was to advance, Brissot seems 
to have perceived. He speaks, for example, of the commercial 
advantages which New York State would acquire through the 
connection of the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers with the Great 
Lakes by a series of canals ;2 and of the possibilities of ex- 
pansion beyond the Mississippi. Unlike many Americans of 
the time, he saw no reason to fear that the Western states would 
separate from the Union. He predicted, on the contrary, that 
in case Spain were so foolish as to insist on closing the Mis- 
sissippi, these states, instead of transferring their allegiance to 
Spain, would rise in their might and drive her out of her west- 
ern possessions.^ 

This question of western expansion was not merely a matter 
of public interest to Brissot, it was also of vital personal con- 
cern, because of its bearing on a possible place of settlement for 
himself, his family, and his friends. The future of America was, 
after all, less important to him than the present and practical 
problems of a prospective settler. "What was the price of 
land?" "What were the wages of a farm laborer?" "Was it 
easy to get labor?" "How much land would it take to sup- 
port a man, his wife, and two or three children?" These were 
some of the points on which Brissot was seeking information.* 

Brissot's wife, meanwhile, was likewise preparing for life in 
America. He must not forget, she wrote to him, to let her know 

1 Nouveau Voyage, ii, 364, 383, 397. ^ /jj^;.^ j^ 224. ^ m^^ jj^ 432-35. 
* See M. Vellay's collection of notes referred to above, p. 67 and note. 



82 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

what they would need for the journey, particularly for the 
ocean voyage. What would life be like; how much comfort 
would they be likely to have; what must they bring with 
them? 1 

Although as a place for his own settlement the Mohawk Val- 
ley and Pennsylvania seem to have been the regions he most 
seriously considered, lands further west also claimed his atten- 
tion. He was keenly alive to the diflSculties of individual set- 
tlement, and welcomed, as a means of overcoming them, the 
formation of land companies.^ 

He foresaw with clearness something of the future of western 
expansion, but it would have taken a wiser man than he to 
foresee the material inventions which were to develop that 
western territory, by making its water-ways so tremendously 
important. The primitive steamboat which he saw being ex- 
perimented with on the Delaware, seemed to him merely an 
interesting novelty; it was too expensive, too cumbersome, 
and required too many men to operate it, to be very useful.^ 

But if Brissot failed to perceive the means by which the 
country was to be developed, of its capacity for development 
he had not the slightest doubt. The taxes appeared to him to 
be low, at least in comparison with those of France. Large 
families were common; prices, if judged by the ordinary cost 
of living, and not by the tavern charges, were moderate; and, 
what seemed most remarkable of all, there were few signs of 
extreme poverty, except in the large cities. The striking ex- 
ceptions to this prosperity were in Rhode Island and New 
Jersey, where, as a result of a craze for paper money, economic 
distress prevailed. 

The existence of paper money was one of the few things 
which Brissot criticized in the United States. He was thor- 

^ Correspondance, 205. 

* See the questions which he asked as to the relative merits of those two 
localities. Correspondance, 185-86. See also his notes in the collection of M. 
Vellay on the Illinois Company and the settlements made under its aus- 
pices. 

' Nouveau Voyage, i, 340. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 83 

oughly convinced of the evils of this irredeemable paper cur- 
rency, and considered it a signal merit of the new constitution 
that, by taking away from the states the power of issuing paper 
money, it relieved existing evils and gave promise of safety for 
the future. Conditions in Rhode Island, on account of the paper 
money, appeared to him especially bad. He also criticized the 
constitution of that state, because it permitted too frequent 
elections of the legislative body, and made the judicial body 
too much subject to the control of the people.^ 

But with these few exceptions Brissot had nothing but warm- 
est praise for America. And that American life was so simple 
and wholesome, and the standard of morality so high, was due, 
he declared again and again, to the liberty which formed the 
basis of the government.'^ In his enthusiasm he was guilty of a 
good deal of triviality. Liberty, in his opinion, accounted for 
everything, from the good temper of the stage-driver to the 
large size of the windows in the hospitals, — both of which, 
he declared, would be exceptional in a land of despotism. To 
liberty and equality was due the longevity of the people. To 
the absence of entire liberty and equality in the case of women, 
was due the greater prevalence of consumption among their 
sex. "They are more susceptible to consumption," he ex- 
plained, "on account of the absence of a civil existence. The 
submission to which women are habituated, to which they are 
condemned, has the effect of chains, which compress and gnaw 
the flesh, cause obstructions, deaden the vital principle, and 
impede the circulation." ^ 

The constitution, which was to Brissot the tangible embodi- 
ment of liberty and equality, was the all-absorbing topic of 
discussion at the time of his visit. At the date of his departure 
from Havre, June 3, 1788, its fate hung in the balance. When 

* Nouveau Voyage, i, 200-12. 

^ He had previously attributed all that was good in American institutions to 
life in the country. See p. 75. The Monthly Review, for 1791 (p. 531), in 
speaking of the Voyage, reminded Brissot that the excellent conditions which 
he ascribed to liberty, were in existence under the British government. 

' Nouveau Voyage, u, 133. 



84 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

he wrote his first letter from America, July 30, the acceptance 
of the constitution by New Hampshire, Virginia, and New 
York, had made the new government a certainty. In this polit- 
ical agitation Brissot took an absorbing interest, and through 
his letters of introduction he had the opportunity of meeting 
some of the men who had most to do with the formation and 
adoption of the new constitution. He visited Franklin, whom 
he had long admired for his part in the American Revolution; 
dined with Madison and Schuyler; and made the acquaintance 
of Hamilton, King, and Jay. In Hamilton he saw the "deter- 
mined air of a republican "; in Madison, the " meditative air of 
a profound politician." He agreed with Madison that the re- 
fusal of North Carolina to accept the constitution would have 
little influence on the minds of the Americans, but he was in- 
clined to lay more weight than Madison on the criticism with 
which that refusal would be received abroad. "People over 
there," he declared, "will not take the trouble to inquire into 
the motives which dictated the refusal, nor will they consider 
the small consequence of this state in the confederation. On 
the contrary, they will look upon it as a germ of perhaps lasting 
division." ^ The one blot upon the constitution was, in Bris- 
sot's mind, the recognition which it gave to slavery. He was 
hopeful, however, that the slave trade would soon be abolished, 
and that a growing sentiment against slavery would lead to 
the extinction of that evil. 

Influenced by his belief in the future prosperity of America, 
he now came to a decision on the question he had been con- 
sidering, and definitely made up his mind to settle in Amer- 
ica, chose Pennsylvania as the place of his abode, and sent for 
his brother-in-law, who was then living in Russia, to come to 
join him.2 In the midst of these plans his eye fell upon a notice 

^ Nouveau Voyage, i, 242, and Correspondance, 202. 

^ Petion, Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel, ii, 237-38. See also RSplique a Stanislas 
Clermont, 9: " Celle qui par sa grandeur et sa simplicity mSritoit plus mon estime 
et mon attachment, la Pennsylvanie [sic] m'avoit adopte pour un de ses enfants." 
He seems to be speaking here only in a figurative sense. There is no record that 
the State of Pennsylvania bestowed citizenship upon him. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 85 

in the American papers, to the effect that the date of the meet- 
ing of the States General had been put forward from May to Jan- 
uary. It seemed that revolution was to begin, and without even 
waiting the arrival of his brother-in-law, Brissot hastened back 
to France,^ in the hope, as he says, of being useful to the cause 
of liberty.^ 

But though he unexpectedly ended his American travels and 
thus changed the whole course of his life, his experience in 
America continued to be an important factor in its influence 
both upon his private life and upon his public career. Immedi- 
ately on landing he made connections with Parker, the agent of 
Duer and Craigie, with the purpose of furthering speculation 
in the American debt,' but he soon lost confidence in him. 
The operations in which they were engaged were not successful, 
and instead of immense gains the association appears to have 
come out of the transaction minus both glory and profit.^ 

Besides the speculation in the American debt, Brissot was 
also interested in the speculation in western land, particularly 
in the operations of Duer and Craigie in connection with the 
so-called Scioto Company. The situation was this: an asso- 
ciation had been formed in America, known as the Ohio Com- 
pany, which had obtained a grant of land from Congress. Tak- 
ing advantage of this situation, Duer and his friends organized 
a private association — the Scioto Company — to buy land 
from Congress under the shadow of the Ohio Company's bar- 
gain.^ The Scioto Company then intended to sell in Holland 

^ He sailed December 3, 1788, and "after a long, tedious and stormy pas- 
sage of 41 days," disembarked at Falmouth, England. (Letter of Craigie to 
Dupont, February 2, 1789, Craigie Papers, American Antiquarian Society; and 
letter of Brissot to Duer, dated Falmouth, January 15, 1789, Scioto Papers, 
New York Historical Society.) 

^ Reponse a tous les libellistes, 25. ' See pp. 66-67. 

^ See the Craigie Papers, American Antiquarian Society; also Scioto Papers, 
New York Historical Society, especially letters of Craigie to Brissot, of June 
13, July 28, 1789, and October 6, 1790; and letters of Brissot to Duer, of Jan- 
uary 31, and April 28, 1789. 

* "It was intended by the Scioto Company to make an immediate sale of its 
rights of preemption in Holland and France. In both these countries large 
amounts of United States securities were held. These securities were then 



86 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

and France its right of preemption, and to this end they sent 
Joel Barlow to France to act as their agent. He arrived in June, 
1788, just after Brissot had sailed for America, and promptly 
set to work to accomplish his task. He soon found, however, 
that it was very difficult to sell a mere preemption in small lots 
to individual purchasers. To create public confidence a com- 
pany was accordingly formed at Barlow's instigation, which 
took over the sale of the land, and which for the time being 
was successful; but the public soon lost confidence and it was 
thought necessary to organize a new company, the formation 
of which was made public in July, 1790. The operations of 
these several companies in many instances were not such as to 
bear the light, and the whole thing ended in failure.^ 

Just what was Brissot's relation to this affair is not clear. 
According to Todd, in his life of Joel Barlow, Brissot, before 
his journey to America, made some effort to sell the company's 
lands, but without success. There is no reliable evidence, how- 
ever, to indicate any such attempt, and from the correspond- 
ence between Brissot and the American speculators at the 
time of his journey to the United States, it would not appear 
that they had had previous intercourse. Because of their as- 
sociation in connection with the American debt, he would 
naturally be connected too with their land schemes. He cer- 
tainly advocated the formation of a European firm for the sale 
of American land. The land companies, he was persuaded, 
would make profit only if they developed a European market. 
It was necessary further, he argued, to open the lands for sale 
through a European house. People would lack confidence in 
any American house. ^ What was needed was a European con- 
almost worthless. It was natural to suppose that their holders would gladly 
part with them in exchange for fertile lands in the west of the United States. 
The securities thus acquired could be used by the Scioto Associates to pay 
Congress for their lands. Since Congress would accept the securities at par 
while the Scioto Associates had received them at a greatly depreciated value, 
the latter would soon be able to pay for their lands and the sums derived 
thereafter would be clear profit." Belote, The Scioto Speculation, i, 20. 

1 Ihid. 

* Observations on the scheme of lottery, respecting the contract of lands on 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 87 

nection. How this should be worked out he set forth in what 
he called a "Plan of a society for promoting the emigration 
from Europe in the [sic] United States." There were many 
sober, industrious people in the various countries of Europe 
who, he was convinced, would be only too glad to emigrate to 
the new world if they could do so with safety and profit. But 
they were ignorant of the good opportunities which awaited 
them in the western lands; they lacked money and they did 
not know how to get there. This was a rare chance for an enter- 
prising company. Such a company should buy lands, establish 
a house, or else enter into a partnership with a house already 
established in a "part of Europe: 1, not very far from home; 
2d, in the center of Europe; 3d, in a free government where its 
operations should not be liable to be enquired into." ^ Such a 
society, he continued, ought further to distribute throughout 
Europe pamphlets in various languages, setting forth the phys- 
ical, political, and commercial advantages to be enjoyed in the 
United States. It ought, moreover, to assist worthy emigrants 
with money, grants of land, and agricultural implements. 

Whether these attempts of Brissot's to promote a European 
company were in the interest of the French Scioto Com- 
pany or in opposition to it in order to further his own private 
interests, is not clear. But whatever may have been his rela- 
tions to Barlow and the French Company up to the spring of 

1789, it is clear that from that date he attacked the French 
Scioto Company most bitterly, and tried to divert interest 
from it to schemes of his own for American settlements. Wit- 
ness the announcement in the Patriots Frangais of April 23, 

1790, of a proposed French settlement in America, not con- 
nected — it is significantly added — with the Scioto Company. 

the Mississippi (undated). Notes by Brissot in the collection of Brissot's papers 
belonging to M. Charles Vellay, referred to above. 

^ The plan is undated, but according to M. Perroud, it was probably drawn 
up about 1786 or 1787. It would fit in, however, he adds, with the announce- 
ment in the Patriate Frangais of April 23, 1790. Correspondance, 458-60. It 
is in Brissot's handwriting and in English, and incidentally shows how much 
grasp he had of the language. 



88 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The advantages of such a settlement, at this juncture, are 
portrayed in glowing terms, but at the same time persons in- 
tending to emigrate are warned that unless they are lovers of 
democratic simplicity and of liberty and equality, they will not 
be suited to the life of the settler. It is added that the posses- 
sion of some means is also necessary. "From what has just 
been said," the writer continues, "it is evident that this estab- 
lishment does not resemble at all that proposed by the Scioto 
Company. That company demands a considerable fortune, 
this one does not; that one carries on its operations in a coun- 
try not yet inhabited, this one in a country already settled." 
Persons wishing further information are directed to write, care 
of the Patriote Frangais. A few months later the Patriote 
Frangais made a more direct attack on what it designated 
as the "so-called Scioto Company." This company, it was 
alleged, was victimizing French citizens.^ 

It was only the French Company, however, which Brissot 
had attacked; the original company he continued to defend, 
and with good reason, for he had been given power of attorney 
by Craigie for the sale of a tract of land on the Susquehanna,'^ 
and if suspicion were thrown upon the company, his own in- 
terests would suffer. In the published account of his travels, 
the Nouveau Voyage, which appeared in April, 1791, he ac- 
cordingly spoke in the highest terms of the Scioto Company, 
and expatiated on the advantages of the western lands.^ In- 
deed, his wish to portray the United States as a desirable place 
for emigration may have been quite as potent a factor in has- 
tening the publication of the work as his endeavor to further 
liberty in France. Furthermore, just at this time he was 
brought into connection by an American friend, Miers Fisher, 
with American agents interested in the lands near the Ohio, 

' Patriate Frangais, August 4, 1790. 

* Craigie to Brissot, January 24, 1789. Scioto Papers, New York Historical 
Society. 

^ In a letter, apparently from Dupont, of November 28, 1791, Brissot is 
informed that he is criticized for speaking so highly of a company in which he 
is himself interested. Scioto Papers, American Antiquarian Society. 



TRAVELS IN THE UNITED STATES 89 

and asked to assist in the sales in company with Claviere at a 
commission of two and one half per cent.^ He was also inter- 
ested in the Illinois Company, and eagerly searched for infor- 
mation concerning its lands and settlements.^ In all these va- 
rious ways he tried to further emigration, sometimes, it would 
appear, with more zeal than discretion. That a man wanted to 
settle in America was sufficient for Brissot ; whether he had the 
proper qualifications for a settler on the frontier mattered little. 
The letters of Madame Brissot at this epoch throw a side 
light on the matter. From them it is evident that Brissot's 
home was a rendezvous for would-be emigrants, not always 
of the most desirable character.^ 

He even thought of emigrating himself. Indeed, when he left 
America it was with the evident intention of returning,^ but 
as political affairs more and more absorbed his attention, he 
gave it up. However, the charm of country life as he had seen 
it there still fascinated him and was probably one of the in- 
fluences which led to his plans for the Societe agricole ou d'amis. 
This was an association, which he tried to form in connection 
with the Rolands and other friends, for buying lands from the 
government and establishing a common life in the country.^ 
The project, however, did not materialize. 

But although Brissot never returned to America, he main- 
tained an active correspondence with numerous friends there, 
both personal and prbfessional. The settlement of his brother- 
in-law in Pennsylvania kept him in close touch with Ameri- 
can affairs, while his connection with the land speculations 
influenced his ideas and activities. 

^ Letter of Miers Fisher to Brissot, February 2, 1791. Correspondance, 261, 
and another letter of November 3, 1790, in Scioto Papers, American Anti- 
quarian Society. 

^ Notes in Brissot's writing communicated to the writer by M. Charles 
Vellay of Paris. 

^ Correspondance, 242-45. 

* Letter of Frangois Dupont. Craigie Papers, American Antiquarian So- 
ciety. 

^ See p. 150. See also for the constitution of the society, Correspondance, 
461. 



90 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The political influence of Brissot's travels was also of much 
importance and is seen throughout his career in the Revolution. 
Indeed, it was largely with the purpose of bringing American 
example before France that he decided in the midst of the tur- 
moil of the Revolution to publish an account of his journey. 
Such an undertaking might seem out of place, he wrote in his 
preface, since "we also have acquired our liberty, but to ac- 
quire liberty is only the first step ; we must learn from the Ameri- 
cans the secret of preserving it." That secret, Brissot con- 
tinued, consisted chiefly in a high standard of morality. "I 
see with pain," he went on, "not only that we do not yet 
possess it, but that we are not yet persuaded of the absolute 
necessity of it for the maintenance of liberty. . . . Without 
private morality, no pure public morality, no public spirit, no 
liberty !" ^ To make the work more complete, he added the 
volume already published in collaboration with Claviere, — 
De la France et des Etats Unis. To round out the whole, a fourth 
volume was needed, dealing with political connections, but the 
time failed him for that.^ Indeed, in order to publish the work 
at all, he was obliged to sacrifice polish; but the time was ripe, 
he was convinced, for just such information, and if he were to 
help France in her revolution he must publish the work as it 
was.* 

Throughout the Revolution America continued to be his 
model. His constant appeals to American precedent in foreign 
affairs, his attempt to mould a constitution for France on the 
lines of the Constitution of the United States, his furtherance of 
Genet's appointment and of his mission to Spanish America, 
and, finally, his alleged adherence to federalism based on the 
ground of his admiration for the Republic across the water,'* — 
all this is evidence both of the lasting results of his travels upon 
himself and also of the influence which, through him, was 
exerted upon the French Revolution by American institutions. 

^ Nouveau Voyage, preface, i, xii. * Ibid., preface, i, xxi, xxx. 

^ The work was published in April, 1791. 
* See chapters vi, vin, and x. 



CHAPTER V 

brissot's career as a municipal politician during 
the constituent assembly 

The news of the rapidly rising tide of excitement at the 
approaching meeting of the States- General had cut short Bris- 
sot's travels in the United States and brought him back post- 
haste to France. He found that the country was indeed in a 
ferment of excitement, people everywhere were discussing the 
organization and functions of the States- General, and the press 
was pouring forth a flood of pamphlets on the subject. Here 
was his opportunity of applying his ideas of reform, and into 
this ferment he threw himself with characteristic ardor. He 
wrote pamphlets, organized committees, and made political 
addresses. In his friend Claviere he found active sympathy, 
and his house and Claviere's soon became centers for political 
discussion. According to Dumont who sometimes attended 
these meetings it was all useless chatter.^ The active partici- 
pants, however, were tremendously in earnest and felt that they 
were performing a most useful and indispensable work in draw- 
ing up declarations of rights and laying down principles for con- 
ducting the proceedings of the States-General. His own ideas 
on these subjects Brissot hastened to set forth in a pamphlet 
called Plan de conduite pour les deputes du peuple aux Etats- 
Generaux de 1789, a production of considerable importance 
for the light it throws upon Brissot's attitude at this important 
epoch. Like most of the pamphleteers of the time, he began 
with a discussion of the system of voting. After considering 
various methods of voting, par ordre, par tete, by a number of 
bureaus, by two chambers, one of which should be composed of 
clergy and nobility, the other of members of the third estate, 

^ Dumont, Souvenirs de Mirabeau, 33; see also Lettres de Mme. Roland, ed. 
by Perroud, ii, 737, Appendix Q. 



92 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

he declared himself opposed to all these methods, and proposed 
instead voting by two chambers, each of which should be con- 
stituted as follows : clergy , 125; nobility, 125; third estate, 250. 
In case of failure to agree, the two chambers were to meet 
together as one body, and decide the matter by a majority vote. 
As for the powers and duties of the States-General, it should in 
the first place take steps to secure the inviolability of letters 
committed to the post, and also the liberty of its members; and 
in order to do its work uninfluenced by the court, it should re- 
move to Paris. Further, in order that no able men should be 
shut out of the States-General, no matter what their financial 
condition, the members should be paid. "Not to pay a salary," 
he maintained, " would lead in France, as it has in England, to 
corruption." It would shut out from the assemblies men of 
talent who are not always in easy circumstances. They have 
had experience in this matter in America, and that is why the 
members of Congress are paid. The salary ought to be suf- 
ficiently large to provide for the daily expenses of the members, 
but not so large as to make the position of deputy sought for as 
a profession or profitable employment. The business of this 
body, he declared, was purely legislative. To make a constitu- 
tion was outside of its province; it could only decree that the 
nation call a special body for that purpose. It would not be 
sufficient, however, to give to the States-General control of the 
taxes and of the army, as in England; there must be permanent, 
annual, and independent meetings of this body. Such meetings 
will serve to counterbalance the bad influence of the ministers, 
but they will not destroy monarchy. "On the contrary," he 
declared, "the true support of the French monarchy will be 
in annual meetings of the States-General. The present reign- 
ing family cannot have a surer and more invariable support." 
This statement was somewhat startling from a man who less 
than three years before had declared that no radical reform 
was possible under a monarchy. It shows that Brissot had 
either modified his ideas or else, in view of the possibility of 
election to the States-General, had modified their expression. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 93 

Meanwhile he actively engaged in the actual preliminaries 
of the elections. For electoral purposes, Paris had been divided 
into sixty districts. Each district was to choose delegates to 
the general electoral assembly of the third estate, and the gen- 
eral electoral assembly, in turn, was to choose twenty rep- 
resentatives to the States-General. In his own district, that of 
the Filles-Saint-Thomas, Brissot hardly arrived on the scene 
before he stepped into a place of prominence and was soon 
elected as its president. Even before the district had finished 
its legitimate business of choosing electors, he came forward 
with a plan, the object of which was to enable the districts to 
exercise some surveillance over the States-General, — in other 
words to enable the people to maintain their sovereignty. 
This was to be accomplished by means of committees of cor- 
respondence between the districts, the electors, and the depu- 
ties of Paris. If the two orders should fight for their preten- 
sions, he argued, the third estate would fight for its " inalienable 
rights." In case a schism should result, the deputies would 
return to their constituents, the inhabitants of the districts. 
The districts, therefore, should remain in readiness to assemble, 
and the only means of assembling the people was by a com- 
mittee of correspondence always in activity. As a result of his 
argument, his district appointed such a committee, with Bris- 
sot himself at its head, and invited the other districts to take 
like action.^ The invitation met with a speedy response, and 
there was thus created, largely through Brissot's instrumental- 
ity, permanent organizations, which were to have an important 
part in the development of the future government of Paris. ^ 

He next proceeded to draft a statement of grievances for the 
use of the electoral assembly in drawing up its cahier of com- 
plaints. Although not a member of this assembly he did not 
hesitate to offer his advice. They would do well, he wrote, to 

^ Observations sur la nScessitS d'Stablir, dans les diffSrents districts et dans 
VAssemblee generale des Hecteurs de Paris, des comitSs de correspondance avec 
les deputes de Paris aux Etats-GSn6reaux, 2 avril, 1789. 

* Chassin, Les tllections, ii, 403. 



94 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

limit their instructions to their deputies to four subjects — 
the organization of the States-General, and the manner of its 
deliberation, a declaration of rights, the consolidation of the 
debt and temporary means of payment. Then after summing 
up what he had already said on these subjects in his Plan de 
conduite, he reiterated with especial emphasis his previous 
statement that imtil fundamental rights were established, 
Paris had better be silent as to her own special grievances.^ 

While dealing with the principles to be upheld by the elec- 
toral assemblies and by the States-General he was quite as 
vitally interested in the persons to be elected. One may be sure 
that the frequent excited gatherings at his house and the hur- 
ried notes which he and his friends were constantly sending to 
each other were not concerned with principles alone, but also 
with the interests of individuals. One may be sure, too, that 
all this activity of Brissot's was not entirely disinterested. He 
looked forward to the States-General as a means of overthrow- 
ing various forms of despotism which he had long and vigor- 
ously attacked, and he was desperately anxious to have a part 
himself in the final assault. The 25th of April he wrote in 
English to a friend : " We are in the electioneering fire. There is 
some chances [sic] for me. I have preached very successfully 
[sic] the people. However, there are so many intrigues that 
I am quite desponding." ^ His friends at Chartres, among 
whom were Petion and the Countess de Seinie, were specially 
active in his behalf and put him forward as a candidate for 
deputy from his native place. ^ But their efforts were unsuc- 
cessful, and at Paris, notwithstanding his prominence in his 
district, for some reason he was not chosen even to the elec- 
toral assembly.* Although discouraged, he still hoped that he 

^ PrScis adressS a VAssemhUe gSnSrale des Slecteurs de Paris pour servir a la 
redaction du cahier des doUances de cette ville. May, 1789. See Chassin, in, 211. 

* Correspondance, 230. This note shows the extent of his knowledge of 
English. 

» Ibid., 225-28. 

* In his Precis adressS a VAssemhUe he alluded to the singular circumstances 
which prevented his election. See also his Discours prononcS a Velection du 
district des Filles-Saint-Thomas, le 21 avril, 1789. Note also that some light is 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 95 

might be chosen to the States-General, and it was, undoubt- 
edly, as much to further his own cause, as to set forth his 
principles, that he drew up the advice as to the cahier. In- 
deed, this draft of a statement of grievances was in part at 
least the expression of his own grievance in not being elected, 
and an excuse for calling the attention of the electors to the 
fact that in choosing the deputies they were not limited to 
their own number.^ 

His reputation as a pamphleteer and a humanitarian helped 
his cause, and his name was inserted fourth in a list of "twenty- 
one friends of the people who deserve to be the choice of the 
electors of Paris." The document in which this assertion was 
made further declared that " there had been distributed in Paris 
lists in which celebrated names were mixed with the names of 
obscure and dangerous men." But in this list, the public was 
assured, were inscribed " only those persons who had made open 
profession of defending the cause of the people." ^ But in spite 
of all these efforts, he was not elected, a result which he after- 
ward declared was due in part to the influence of the Duke of 
Orleans against him, though his reason for the supposition is 
not clear.' He was naturally bitterly disappointed, but a man 

thrown on the matter by fitienne Dumont. He says: "J'etais a la section des 
Filles-Saint-Thomas ; c'kait un quartier central, occupS par la classe la plus 
opulente : pendant long-temps il ny avait pas deux cent individus. L'embarras 
de se mettre en action Stait ^extreme ; le bruit Stait affreux. Tout le mondeitait 
dehout, tous parlaient a la-fois ; les plus grandes efforts du prSsident nobtenaient 
pas deux minutes de silence. II y eut Hen d'autres difficultes sur la maniere de 
prendre les suffrages, et de les compter. J'avais recueilli pluisieurs traits curieux 
de cette enfance de la dSmocratie, mais Us sont a-peu-pres effaces de ma mSmoire, 
Us revenaient tous a V empressement des hommes a pretention, qui voulaient parler 
pour sefaire connaitre, et sefaire connditre pour etre elus. 

"On voyait les premiers essais de Vart des intrigues et des cabales pour f aire 
tomber les nominations sur ceux de son partie. On ne vonlait point de listes de 
candidats ; tous Staient appeles & choisir sur tous. Les voix se disperserent teU 
lement dans les premieres operations, qu'on ne pouvait obtenir la majority ab- 
solue pour aucun des designes. II fallut rSitirer V Election jusqua ce quenfin on 
obtint le rSsultat nScessaire." Dumont, Souvenirs, 39-40. 

^ Precis adressS a VAssemblee g^nhale des Mecteurs de Paris. 

* Chassin, ii, 312. 

' MSmoires, i, 119. It must be remembered that at the time Brissot wrote 



96 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

of his interests and ideas was not going to sit quietly by and let 
reform go on under his eyes without taking some part in it. 
Though cut off from participation in legislation, he was by no 
means cut off from exercising influence upon it. There were 
other opportunities, and he seized upon them, threw himself 
heart and soul into the work of the Amis des Noirs, and 
made it a factor with which the States-General had to deal. 
He established a newspaper — the Patriote Frangais — which 
helped to create public opinion, and so, in turn, influenced 
legislation, and if he could not be a leader in the reorganization 
of France, he played a very important part in the reorganiza- 
tion of Paris, in establishing its liberty, and in transferring 
authority from the central government to the people. 

"The Revolution made Paris a commune before it made 
France a nation," says M. Monin.^ The old government of 
the city was divided between the parlement, the Chdtelet, the 
ministry of Paris, the lieutenant-general of the police, certain 
guilds, the hotel de ville, the church, and the university. "It 
was a chaos of competing authorities, a tangle of obsolete priv- 
ileges, and a nest of scandalous abuses. Anomalous courts 
jostled and scrambled for jurisdiction, ancient guilds and cor- 
porations blocked every reform, atrocious injustice and in- 
veterate corruption reigned high-handed in the name of king, 
noble or church." By a single event, the storming of the Bas- 
tille, this ancient municipal regime was swept from power and 
a clear field was left for the development of a modern city gov- 
ernment in Paris. But to tear down was one thing; to build up 
quite another. Immediately on the fall of the Bastille and the 
flight of the constituted authorities, the instinct far law and 
order asserted itself and led to the acclamation of Bailly as 

his memoirs, it was to his interest to show that there was no connection 
between him and the Duke. 

1 Vtltat de Paris en 1789, 27. A comparison of the present government of 
London and of Paris makes clear the advantage which the latter gained in the 
Revolution. Whereas London still suffers from the overlapping of authori- 
ties and from antiquated tradition, the government of Paris is clear cut and 
thoroughly modern. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 97 

Mayor of Paris and of Lafayette as commander of the national 
guard, but it was not until October, 1790, after several unsuc- 
cessful experiments and organizations, that anything like a 
permanent and legal form of municipal government was estab- 
lished. In the actual attack on the Bastille, there is no record 
that Brissot took any part, but with the resulting events he was 
closely connected. As the president of the district of the Filles- 
Saint-Thomas he had the honor of receiving the keys of the 
fortress,^ he is said to have been prominent in putting forward 
Lafayette ^ as commander of the national guard, and in the 
slow process of building up the new city government, he was 
one of the leaders. 

The machinery for forming a new government was set in 
motion by the electoral assembly. This assembly had been 
chosen in the spring of 1789 and was charged solely with the 
duties of drawing up a general cahier and of electing the depu- 
ties of the third estate of Paris to the States-General. After 
performing these duties it had no further legal warrant for 
existence, but nevertheless it did not dissolve; and, when on 
July 13 and 14 the old city government fell to pieces, it slipped 
into the vacant place, and with the assistance of the electoral 
organizations of the districts, proceeded to take upon itself 
the government of the city. The district assemblies, like the 
general assemblies of the electors, were formed with the one 

* This rests on Brissot's own statement given by Charpentier in La Bas- 
tille dhoiUe, i, troisieme livraison, 78. It is also mentioned in the introduction 
to the MoniteuT. But the original Moniteur was not published till November, 
1789, and the edition containing the introduction was not published till 1796. 
This reference is therefore not contemporaneous and is probably derived from 
Brissot's own statement. A key of the Bastille was sent to Washington by 
Lafayette {Washington's Writings, ed. by Ford, xi, 493). It is possible that 
Lafayette may have received the key from Brissot. 

* "On se rappelle que c'est lui [Brissot] qui appuya a la Maison Commune, la 
motion faite par le flagorneur Fauchet, de nommer le sieur Motti6, g&nhalissime 
desguardes nationale." Note of Delacroix in U Intrigue dSvoil6e, ou Robespierre 
vengS des outrages et des calomnies des ambitieux, quoted in Annates revolu- 
tionnaires, i, 338-39, April, 1908. This is very doubtful authority, however, 
as it was to the interest of Delacroix to make out Brissot as closely connected 
with Lafayette. 



98 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

purpose of carrying on the election, and on the completion of 
that work should have dissolved. Instead, they proceeded to 
effect a more or less permanent organization and to take part 
in political discussion. This was due to Brissot, who with his 
plan of committees of correspondence, furnished the means for 
permanency. There was thus created a number of local organ- 
izations to which the electoral assembly could appeal. This 
assembly was perfectly aware of the irregularity, not to say 
the illegality of its position as a city government, and within 
a few days after the fall of the Bastille it suffered the districts 
to make formal choice of a regular central assembly. The muni- 
cipal government thus created was called the assembly of the 
representatives of the Commune and met for the first time, 
July 25, 1789.1 

As the president and most prominent representative of the 
district of the Filles-Saint-Thomas Brissot was elected to the 
new municipality, and thus he found his first real opportunity 
of applying his political theories to the solution of practical 
problems. These theories, as has been seen, tended toward 
democracy and popular sovereignty. The first problem which 
presented itself was that of providing a permanent municipal 
organization. Where, for instance, was the balance of power 
to be, — with the district, or with the central administrative 
body? — a question of sovereignty. In the formation of a muni- 
cipal constitution how far was the city to act independently of 
the National Assembly? — a question of liberty or sovereignty 
under another aspect. Was Paris, like other cities, to be in- 
cluded in a department, or was it to form a government by 
itself? — a question of equality. 

To each of these questions Brissot had a ready answer, but 

* The successive stages of the development of this city government may be 
very briefly stated as follows: (1) the assembly of the electors of Paris from 
July 14 to July 25, 1789; (2) the temporary Commime which lasted from July 
25 to September 18, 1789; (3) the second temporary Commune from September 
25, 1789, to October 8, 1790; (4) the permanent Commune which was estab- 
lished October 8, 1790. See Lacroix, Actes de la Commune de Paris, pendant la 
Revolution; Introduction, i, u. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 99 

as he was not elected to the constitutional committee of the 
municipal assembly, it seemed at first that he was to have little 
chance to exert his influence. A general laxity in the manage- 
ment of committee business, however, had made it possible for 
persistent outsiders to take part in the discussions and influ- 
ence the decisions. Taking advantage of this state of things, 
Brissot succeeded in attaching himseK to the committee as 
a kind of unoflScial member, and in exercising considerable in- 
fluence upon its conclusions. For instance, the plan for a con- 
stitution as it had been originally presented to the committee 
had contained no declaration of rights. This seemed to Brissot 
so glaring an omission that he promptly drew up a municipal 
charter which did contain such a declaration and submitted it 
to the committee. The declaration asserted that cities had the 
right to form their own government, subject to the general 
supervision of the central government; that Paris, as a unique 
city, ought to have a special form of government and be con- 
sidered both a city and a province; that all citizens ought to 
have part in the elections; and that the preponderance of power 
should lie with the central city administration and not with the 
districts.^ Brissot unfortunately does not seem to have been 
consistent, for in his Motifs des commissaires pour adopter le 
plan de municipalite he makes the suffrage depend on the pay- 
ment of a direct and personal tax. 

The plan itself provided for the division of Paris into sixty 
districts; for a central legislative body of three hundred mem- 
bers, five from each district; for the renewal of one fifth of the 
legislative body each year; and for a conseil de ville of sixty 
members, the majority of whom were to be chosen by the legis- 
lative body of the municipality. Its fundamental principle, 
the concentration of power in the legislative body of three hun- 
dred, was certainly not in harmony with the declaration of 
rights nor with Brissot's ideas of democracy, and was a de- 
cided contrast to other plans which gave more power to the 

^ Observations sur le plan de municipalitS de Paris, suivies du plan original 
ct d'une declaration des droits des municipalitSs. 



100 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

mayor or to the districts. Two of its features suggest the 
arrangements frequently carried out in a modern city govern- 
ment: the close relation of the districts to the central govern- 
ment, secured by making the president of each district a mem- 
ber of the legislative body; and the system of partial renewal 
of that body. This concentration of power naturally met with 
much opposition on the part of the districts. It was asserted 
that places would be open only to the rich. In consequence the 
municipality would degenerate into an aristocracy, and finally, 
these class distinctions could be avoided only by such gen- 
eral periodic renewals in the assembly as would leave at each 
renewal only a minority of former members in office. The dis- 
tricts also claimed that the choice of the conseil de ville be- 
longed of right to them, and not to the legislative body; and 
further, that one member should be chosen to this council from 
each district, — a claim which suggests the modern question 
of ward representation.^ Brissot's plan was accordingly modi- 
fied in this particular, the choice of the conseil de ville being 
transferred to the districts. ^ Nevertheless, the essential part 
of his plan was accepted and formed the basis of the successive 
provisional organizations under which Paris was governed from 
September, 1789, to October, 1790. Brissot was elected to the 
assembly of the representatives under this new government and 
endeavored to take an active part in municipal affairs. 

The second important question in regard to the new city 
government, the proper relation of the national government to 
municipal government, Brissot answered quite in accord with 
his principles of democracy and with the most modern ideas of 
"home rule for cities." ^ Municipal and provincial assemblies, 
he declared, ought, as far as their objects and their power are 
concerned, to be entirely distinct and separate from the national 
legislative assembly. The function of the latter was merely to 
give its sanction to every municipal and provincial constitu- 

^ Robiquet, Le personnel municipal, 147-148, note; 162. ^ Ibid., 162. 
' Discovrs prononcS par Brissot de Warville au district des Filles-Saint- 
Thomas, July 21, 1789. Lacroix, Actes de la Commune, i, 292. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 101 

tion. In short, cities ought to have the right to form their own 
municipal governments; to the central government belonged 
only the veto power over the clauses of the municipal constitu- 
tions. Indeed, Brissot was so jealous of the rights of the new 
government of Paris that when Mirabeau, in speaking of the 
rights of local civil authorities, criticized the municipalities as 
being aristocratic and despotic,^ he saw in Mirabeau's remarks 
an attack on Paris and immediately proceeded to arraign Mira- 
beau in a letter published in the Patriote Frangais in which he 
reiterated his former arguments, declaring again that it was 
the province of the municipalities to draw up their own system 
of government, and that the legislative power had only the most 
limited control over their charters. He soon discovered on 
reading a fuller report of the speech in question that Mirabeau 
had really cast no aspersions on Paris. He was therefore obliged 
to retract his too hasty criticisms.'^ 

The third important question was that of the advisability of 
including Paris in a department of the same size as other de- 
partments, or of forming it into a department by itself. Here 
Brissot took what has proved to be the modern view, advocat- 
ing a special form of government for Paris and claiming that it 
was not a violation of equality since Paris was a unique city. 
In a speech before the city council he advanced the argument, 
since justified by experience, that the exceptional conditions of 
a large city require a particular kind of government, and that 
to make such a city dependent on a department in just the same 
manner as smaller cities were dependent, is to work against the 
interests of its inhabitants.* In this case, however, Brissot was 
not altogether successful, for although the Department of the 
Seine was so constituted as to include but little territory out- 
side of Paris, yet the Commune of Paris did not secure an 
independent government but was made subordinate to this 
departmental government.* 

^ Moniteur, August 10-14, 1789. ^ Patriote Frangais, August 17-18, 1789. 
' Opinion de J. P. Brissot de TVarville sur la question de savoir si Paris sera 
le centre d'un dSpartement, December 15, 1789. 

* Lacroix, Actes de la Commune, iii. Introduction, and p. 197. 



102 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Meanwhile, in the administration, as well as in the organiza- 
tion of the city government, he was taking an active part. He 
served on committees, made speeches both in his district and 
section, and in the central assembly, drew up addresses, and at 
the same time, by means of his newspaper, the Patriote Fran- 
gais, kept the public informed of municipal ajffairs and of his 
own views upon them. Especially on occasions when the muni- 
cipality had a communication to make to the National As- 
sembly or imdertook in other ways to make its influence felt in 
national affairs, Brissot was sure to appear at the front, if he 
did not himself take the initiative. For example, on the bring- 
ing of the king and queen and the National Assembly to Paris, 
he was appointed as one of the committee to draw up an ad- 
dress to be sent to all the municipalities of France,^ and on 
another committee to draw up and present an address to the 
National Assembly on the same occasion. Both addresses ap- 
pear to have been Brissot's own work and were skillfully ex- 
pressed. They minimized the actual events of October 5 
and 6, dwelt on the advantages of the removal to Paris in 
that the Assembly would be more imder the influence of the 
people, and assured the Assembly that the municipality of 
Paris would take all measures in its power for its protection. 
Again when it was a question of stating the opinion of the muni- 
cipal government on toleration for the Jews, Brissot was ap- 
pointed to examine a work on the subject.^ And once more 
when the very important matter of the ecclesiastical property 
was under discussion he was named on the committee to pre- 
sent an address to the National Assembly.^ In this case it was 
strange that Brissot should have been put on the committee, 
for, in a recent address, he had expressed views with which the 
municipal assembly was not in sympathy. The National As- 
sembly had offered to the municipalities of France the op- 
portunity to purchase the lands of the Church, to re-sell them, 
and to keep a generous share of the proceeds. This opportu- 

^ Lacroix, Actes de la Commune, ii, 245-47. 
» Ibid., V, 498. » Ibid., vi, 130. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 103 

nity, Brissot declared, ought to be confined in the case of each 
municipality to ecclesiastical territory within its own limits, 
for, he argued, municipalities were local administrations; they 
could look after distant property only with great inconvenience 
and expense; and finally, the conflicting interests which would 
inevitably arise would put a severe strain upon the spirit of 
fraternity. Furthermore, if the municipahties were really dis- 
interested, they would also give up the profits accorded to them 
by the re-sale. Paris, he added, had had a fine chance to offer 
to all the other municipalities of France an example of patriot- 
ism.^ This opportunity Paris declined to avail herself of, on 
the ground that a large part of the ecclesiastical property in 
the city of Paris was unproductive, and that as it might be 
years before she could re-sell, her interests would be sadly in- 
jured if she were limited in her acquisitions to Paris itseK.^ 

Meanwhile, the city had a more pressing difficulty to meet 
in the scarcity of currency, and on t)his question, too, Brissot 
had something to say. The trouble, he declared, was due to the 
suspension of payment of its notes by the caisse d'escompte. 
This institution was a bank of issue founded during the reign 
of Louis XV, and reestablished under Turgot, It had not been 
sufficiently controlled by the government, had gotten into 
difficulty and suspended payment. The remedy, according to 
Brissot, was not to lessen the difficulty for Paris by circulating 
the bills of the caiss'e in the provinces, neither was it to issue 
small notes, but solely to limit its privileges by making the 
caisse (Tescompie redeem all its bills in cash. Every bill, he 
declared in terms which were hardly consistent with his argu- 
ments in favor of assignats, which was not instantly converti- 
ble into specie, was a dangerous kind of paper. The muni- 
cipality ought to appeal to the National Assembly to forbid a 
further suspension of payment of the caisse d'escompte, and to 

' Motion sur la nSceesiti de circonscrire la vente des Mens eccUsiasiiques aux 
municipalitSs, dans leur territoire. PrSsentSe d, V Assemble genSrale des reprS' 
sentants de la Commune de Paris, May 22, 1790. 

» Lacroix, v, 457, 500; vi, 51, 59, 130. 



104 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

make all possible haste to discover and announce the real state 
of the finances.^ 

The finances were not the only branch of the administration 
which Brissot felt the people of Paris ought to censure, and in 
a speech before the general assembly of the section of the Bib- 
liotheque, the 24th of October, 1790, he emphasized his ideas 
of popular sovereignty and made an appeal for the dismissal of 
the entire ministry, including the first clerks. The request for 
the dismissal of the ministry had already been made, but 
hitherto without result. "The National Assembly has suc- 
cumbed," he cried; "it is now time for the people to triumph, 
it is time for them to make their voice heard. The ministers 
of the army and navy have protected aristocratic officers; the 
minister of foreign affairs has protected officers who have not 
taken the oath, the minister of finance has badly mismanaged 
the finances. They should all be dismissed." In this case Bris- 
sot was successful, at least to the extent that a resolution was 
passed urging their dismissal and sent to the National As- 
sembly.^ According to the Journal general de la cour et de la 
ville, he was not content with his success in the section of the 
Bibliotheque, but had thousands of copies of his address printed 
and distributed throughout Paris.^ Meanwhile, he was standing 
for the right of the people to criticize, not only the ministry but 
their own city officers. He also boldly upheld Marat and Dan- 
ton who represented the democratic party in their attacks on 
the moderates and aristocrats, as represented by the mayor, 
Bailly. Brissot thus allied himself, not only with freedom of 
speech, but with democracy. 

But Brissot by no means confined his attention to Paris and 
the influence of Paris on the National Assembly ; he was equally 
interested in the development of local government throughout 

^ Discours sur la raretS du nwmSraire et sur les moyens d'y remSdier, prononcS 
h V Assemhlie ginSrale des reprhentants de la Commune de Paris, le 10 fSvrier, 
1790. Le Patriate Frangais, February 15, 1790. *"" 

* Discours prononci d. la section de la Bibliotheque dans son Assemble g6n6rale 
le 2^ octobre, 1790, sur la question du renvoi des ministres. 

' Journal ginSral de la cour et de la ville, November 9, 1790. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 105 

France. He was a member of the society of "patriotic elec- 
tors" whose object was to fm*ther the election of good local 
officers and of the Societe des anciens representants de la Com- 
mune who through their comite de surveillance kept up a cor- 
respondence with the directories,^ while in the columns of the 
Patriote Frangais he devoted much space to local municipal 
affairs and gave frequent advice as to the dangers to be avoided. 
For example, in the issue of the 8th of June, 1790, he warned 
the electors to be cautious in the choice of their officers and to 
avoid all frivolous and vain persons who were incapable of 
understanding the meaning of the word equality. On a previ- 
ous occasion he had been more precise and inserted an article 
which advised the electors in organizing a new government not 
to choose the present officers, nor, in short, any person who 
belonged to the old order of things. Such advice naturally did 
not escape the attention of the proscribed classes and was the 
occasion of an acrimonious pamphlet directed against the 
Patriote Frangais by one of their number. ^ 

Throughout his career as a municipal politician, Brissot 
showed himself thoroughly radical in his hostility to the old 
regime and in his approval of the new. He even tried to use his 
position of influence in municipal affairs to further a new colo- 
nial regime. He endeavored to interest his fellow politicians in 
the cause of the negro, and sent copies by the hundred to the 
central municipal assembly of addresses of the Societe des Amis 
des Noirs. These addresses were apparently favorably received, 
but when he attempted to bring the cause before his district, 
his constituents told him plainly that his advocacy of the anti- 
slave trade propaganda was untimely, refused to support his 

* RSflexions sur Vctat de la sociStS des Slecteurs patriotes sur ses travaux, sur 
les formes propres & faire de bonnes Sections, — luh a VassembUe de cette soci6t6, 
dans la sSance du 21 dScembre, 1790, par J. P. Brissot, ilecteur, Paris, 25 dicem- 
bre, 1790. 

^ LeUre & M. Brissot de Warville sur ses Reflexions importantes relatives aux 
ilecteurs futurs des municipaliiSs contenus dans le supplement du No. CLXIV 
de son Journal intitul6 Le Patriate Frangais, par Verney, avocat Lyon, January 
30, 1790. 



106 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

measures in favor of the negro, and expressed their strongest 
disapproval of any steps which might interfere with colonial 
commerce.^ Meanwhile, he was sharply criticized by the press 
for dragging such a topic into the discussion, while the real 
business of the municipality, the formation of a permanent 
government, was still unfinished.^ 

Brissot's main work, however, in the new city government, 
that in connection with which he was best known and most 
severely criticized, was as a member of the Comite des Re- 
cherches. This committee was organized October 22, 1789, and 
the same day Brissot was chosen a member. Its functions — 
" to receive denunciations and depositions of intrigues, plots, 
and conspiracies, in case of necessity to keep under surveillance 
the persons denounced, to examine them, to collect proof " ^ — 
were not unlike those of the governmental police under the old 
regime. The very nature of such functions, involving of neces- 
sity a certain amount of secrecy and arbitrary action, was 
sufficient to bring the committee into disfavor and to arouse 
bitter criticism.* They had to meet the impossible problem 
of reconciling the methods of a special tribunal with the new 
democratic ideas of liberty and equality. But to stand for law 
and order, and at the same time to show their abhorrence of 
the old regime and all its works, was a matter of some dif- 
ficulty. For example, it was apparently their business to in- 
vestigate the disorder of the 5th and 6th of October at Versailles 
and punish the authors of it; but they were obviously afraid to 

* Lacroix, ni, 366, 370, note 2; iv, 100; also Extrait des registres des dSlibSra- 
tions du district des Filles-Saint-Thomns. SvpplSment au proces-verbal de 
I'assemblSe nationale. Colonies, i; Traite des Negres, ii. 

2 Les Revolutions de Paris, February 13-20, 1790. 
» Lacroix, ii, 376-77. 

* A report of the work of the committee, made November 30, 1789, only 
a little more than a month after its formation, will serve to indicate the kind 
of work in which it was engaged. "The committee," says the report, "finds 
three kinds of plots to deal with: (a) those attributed to the aristocratic 
party; (b) such abnormal excesses as those committed in the Chateau of Ver- 
sailles; (c) schemes for frightening the people, — such as incendiary motions 
and seditious writings." Lacroix, in, 76-81. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 107 

do so lest they might be thought to be on the side of royalty 
against the people. They had no such scruples, however, about 
attacking representatives of the old regime, no matter what 
their rank or official position. 

The prominence of the persons thus accused made the com- 
mittee and its methods very conspicuous. It was a situation of 
which the royalist newspapers were not slow to take advantage. 
They defended the victims of the committee and assailed its 
principles. "You may pride yourselves," they said, "on your 
democratic principles; you may put these principles into prac- 
tice by attacking representatives of royalty, but in spite of 
your pretensions, you yourselves are using power nothing short 
of despotic; and, while bringing accusations against the old 
regime, you are employing its very methods." On account of 
his reputation as an opponent of despotism, Brissot was the 
most conspicuously inconsistent member of the committee and 
was accordingly singled out for special attack. "We know 
very well," declared the Ades des Apotres, "that no Comite 
des Recherches has the right to hold citizens accountable for 
their ideas or for their opinions; that Comites des Recherches 
and municipalities are not tribunals instructed to judge such 
matters; that there is no law in existence against the liberty of 
the press. We know all this, and if we did not know it M. Bris- 
sot de Warville, the president of the Comite des Recherches, 
would tell us." Nor was such criticism confined to the royalist 
journals. So advanced a paper as the Revolutions de Paris also 
called Brissot to account. "A longer exercise of power," it 
declared, "might become fatal to the virtues of that com- 
mittee. The decemvirs oppressed no one at the beginning of 
their magistracy; it was only as they became familiar with the 
power with which they were clothed that they became tyrants. 
... It is time that they abdicated. The spirit of the inquisition 
seems to have already destroyed the good principles of that 
member of the committee who, a martyr of liberty under the 
ministerial regime, we thought, was going to be its defender 
under the coming new regime. 'Some authors of incendiary 



108 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

writings have been arrested,' says M. Brissot de Warville in his 
paper of November 8. . . . Before going further we ask M. 
Brissot de Warville, the journalist, by what rule M. Brissot 
de Warville, the member of the Comite des Recherches, decides 
whether a certain piece of writing is incendiary or whether it 
is not." 1 

These general charges received a special and damaging ap- 
plication in the affair of MM. Dhosier and Petit-Jean. The 
case itself was of little moment, but it was important in the 
accusations to which it gave rise, and because it provoked a 
defense of the committee of which Brissot was the author.^ 
MM. Dhosier and Petit-Jean were two men who had appeared 
at the Chateau of Saint-Cloud, June 29, 1790, and aroused sus- 
picion by their peculiar actions. On being questioned, they pro- 
duced a paper purporting to contain directions from the Virgin 
Mary to the king, which they declared was given to them by 
Madame Thomassin, who, while in a state of somnambulism, 
had received it directly from the Holy Virgin. This paper, 
which at first sight appeared to be the production of some weak- 
minded individuals, seemed to the authorities to contain evi- 
dences of a conspiracy. Madame Thomassin and her friend 
Madame Jumilhac were accordingly arrested, and after ex- 
amination the committee reported to the effect that although 
there were suspicious circumstances, the affair was not worth 
investigation.^ 

This report was taken up by Stanislas Clermont,* who made 
it the basis of an attack on the Comite des Recherches. He ac- 
cused the committee of the following offenses : ^ they arrested 
Madame Jumilhac on insufficient evidence; they did not make 
any effort to obtain the corpus delicti ; they used an unneces- 

* Les Revolutions de Paris, November 8-14, 1789. 

' Brissot, Rapport dans Vaffaire de MM. Dhosier et Petit-Jean . . .le 29 
juillet, 1790. 

^ Brissot . . . d Stanislas Clermont, 39. 

* Stanislas Clermont was a leader of the liberal nobility. 

* RSJlexions sur Vouvrage intituU : "Projei de contre-rivolution par les som- 
nambulists ou rapports dans Vafaire de MM. Dhosier et Petit-Jean," aoAt, 1790. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 109 

sary display of force in order to arrest her; they did not con- 
front her with the accuser; they neither acquitted nor con- 
demned her. The committee, in short, was a tribunal which 
considered itself above law, arresting, imprisoning, punishing, 
according to its will — a veritable inquisition. To these ac- 
cusations Brissot made a formal reply ^ to this effect : that the 
paper in question was of a treasonable nature, and that there 
was, therefore, due reason for Madame Jumilhac's arrest; that 
the order for her arrest came from the Comiie des Recherches 
of the National Assembly; that the high rank of Madame 
Jumilhac afforded no ground for treating her with more con- 
sideration than other people; that a large force was necessary 
in arresting her to prevent opposition by her friends and serv- 
ants; that the verdict was necessary from the circumstances of 
the case. The general charge that the committee was an in- 
quisitorial body, Brissot denied most emphatically. This tri- 
bunal was not an inquisition, he declared, for it was not secret; 
the same proofs were required as in ordinary tribunals; the 
prisoners were not refused permission to see their friends, and 
were not kept in solitary confinement. Surely such a committee 
was necessary in time of crisis. Very much the same accusa- 
tions had been made by the Chevalier de Pange, in answer to 
whom Brissot had already made a formal defense of the com- 
mittee, in which he declared that there was no such thing as 
delation under a free government.^ To the accusation that the 
committee was simply the old police under a changed name, he 
answered that although it might have the same powers, it was 
like the old police neither in function nor in spirit. It did not 
work in secret nor pronounce sentence, but merely sent the 
accused to the proper tribunal; further, its object was not, 
as with the old police, " to support despotism, but to defend the 
temple of liberty." While Brissot was undoubtedly justified 
on account of the extraordinary circumstances of the time in 

^ J. P. Brissot . . . & Stanislas Clermont, and Riplique d, Stanislas Cler- 
mont. 

2 Lettre de Brissot a M. le Chevalier de Pange, 1790. 



110 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

making these distinctions, he showed a perverse tendency to 
exaggerate the importance of a change of motive, especially 
in his assertion that a committee of inquiry might justly use the 
machinery of despotism provided it were done in the interests 
of liberty. 

The real justification for such a committee was in the neces- 
sities of the time. As early as October, 1790, when conditions 
seemed to have become more normal, the question of its dis- 
solution was discussed and the motion for its continuance 
passed by a very small majority.^ Brissot himself shortly after- 
ward withdrew from the committee.^ A year later, the com- 
mittee as a whole resigned, on the ground that "the Revolu- 
tion was ended and the reign of law established." ^ 

Meanwhile Brissot had aroused opposition of another kind, 
on account of his principles regarding the distribution of au- 
thority in the city government. The form of government which 
went into effect in September, 1789, was, after all, only provi- 
sional, and the city council still had, as its chief work, the 
formation of a permanent organization. The main issue was, 
as before, the balance of power between the central council 
and the districts. Brissot continued to support the central coun- 
cil, and thereby came into renewed conflict with the districts. 
The 30th of November, 1789, he made a motion in the city 
council that they should ask the National Assembly to au- 
thorize its constitutional committee to consult with the com- 
mittee chosen by the city council for the purpose of presenting 
a plan of organization for Paris. In this motion Brissot ap- 
peared to be desirous of confining all collaboration in the matter 
to a committee of the council to the exclusion of the council 
itself, not to mention the districts.* Such a proposition was 
naturally opposed by large numbers of the council, while nu- 
merous representatives of the districts appeared to express their 
vehement disapproval, and after much discussion it was voted 

1 Lacroix, Acies de la Commune, 2d series, i, 125. 

2 Robiquet, Le personnel municipal de Paris, 441. ^ Ibid., 465. 
* Lacroix, Actes de la Commune, in, 82, 89-90. 



A MUNICIPAL POLITICIAN 111 

down. The affair seems to have provoked great excitement. 
Brissot was called to account for not having given a correct 
report of it in the Patriate Frangais, whereupon he promised 
to set the matter right and at the same time protested that 
he had not intended to deprive the districts of all voice in the 
matter.^ But the districts were not to be convinced. He soon 
stirred up the enmity of his own district by an unwise advocacy 
of his propaganda against the slave trade. ^ Furthermore, in the 
matter of the administration of the sale of ecclesiastical lands, 
he aroused not only his own, but all the districts. The man- 
agement of these sales was claimed by the districts, — a de- 
mand which Brissot opposed on the ground that the districts 
were not administrative bodies. The management belonged 
therefore not to them but to the bureau de ville, the adminis- 
trative branch of the general city government.^ The districts 
had their revenge when, in the establishment of the permanent 
municipal government, in October, 1790, they refused to elect 
Brissot to the municipal council or to any other oflSce. His 
active part in the municipal politics of Paris thus came to an 
end. 

In view of his later mortal combat with the municipal gov- 
ernment of Paris, his early connection with it is of special inter- 
est. In view, also, of the ground of that combat, — the strife 
between the provinces and Paris, — his early insistence on the 
importance of Paris is noteworthy. Because it was so impor- 
tant he argued it must have a special form of government. But 
also because of its importance it must recognize its duties. For 
this reason — because it was the foremost city — he had in- 
sisted that it ought not to state its own grievances till the 
general grievances were adjusted, that it ought not to lessen 
its own burdens by floating the notes of the caisse d'escompte 
on the country at large; and on the other hand that it should 

^ Lacroix, Ades de la Commune, in, 124; and Les Revolutions de Paris, 
November 28 to December 5, 1789. 

2 See p. 197. 

' Motion sur la necessity de circonscrire la vente des biens eccUsiastiques aux 
municipalitis. May, 1790. 



112 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

set a good example to France by a disinterested policy in the 
matter of church lands. In short, Paris must take her place 
as the first city of France. 

While remaining true to his ideals of equality and govern- 
ment by the people, he found it necessary to modify them some- 
what in practical politics; for example, in limiting the power 
of the districts and in the case of the Comiie des Recherches, 
while continuing to preach liberty he had not hesitated to use 
despotic power to preserve it. K his interests subsequently 
changed, and if from being an enthusiastic representative of 
the municipality of Paris he became one of its most bitter 
foes, his fundamental policy did not change, and in his future 
work as a legislator in helping to transform France the lim- 
ited monarchy into France the republic, he showed the same 
ideals and the same policy that he had shown in his work as 
a municipal politician in changing Paris of the old regime into 
Paris the modern city. 



CHAPTER VI 

brissot's career during the constituent assembly 
as a journalist — le patriote fran^ais 

Part I 

His Struggles to Establish a Newspaper and his Attitude on Legislation 

Brissot had failed to be elected to the Constituent Assem- 
bly/ but he was none the less to exert an important influence 
during its session, not only as a municipal politician, but to a 
greater degree as the editor of one of the chief newspapers of 
the period, — the Patrioie Frangais. In starting this journal 
Brissot was a pioneer in two respects. In the first place he 
established one of the first real newspapers in anything like 
the modern sense of the term. Up to the time of the French 
Revolution such periodic publications as existed were more 
like series of essays or pamphlets, "periodic books" — to use 
Brissot's own phrase. In the production of this kind of litera- 
ture Brissot himself had had some experience in his work on 
the Annates of Linguet and the Courrier of Swinton and in 
his own Correspondance Universelle. The French Revolution 
now brought about 'a great and sudden change. It converted 
the pamphlet into the regular newspaper, and led to the found- 
ing of a large number of daily journals of every shade of opinion 
and of every degree of excellence. Of these new journals Bris- 
sot's Patriots Frangais was practically the first. In the second 
place he took the lead in a valiant struggle against the censor- 
ship of the press,^ — a struggle which brings into high relief 
a picture of the gradual crumbling of the old regime and the 
slow and painful building up of the new. 

* The name afterwards given to the body summoned as the States-General. 

* Note also the part taken by Mirabeau in this struggle in his attempt to 
establish his newspaper, the Etats-GenSraux. 



114 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

It was a courageous attempt that he made, in view both of 
his own unfortunate encounters with government repression 
and of the existing restrictions on the press. On March 16, 
1789, he issued his first prospectus, in which, after portraying 
the advantages of the newspaper over the pamphlet, he stated 
his intention of founding a newspaper which should further 
revolution in France, just as the newspaper had furthered 
revolution in America. He declared, moreover, in unmistak- 
able terms that he proposed to make that newspaper not only 
truly national and free, but also independent of the censorship 
and of every kind of influence. As to the details of the publica- 
tion, he stated that the paper would appear about the first of 
April and that the price of subscription would be 24 livres a 
year.^ A few days later he published a second prospectus, in 
which he announced that the paper would be published four 
times a week instead of twice, as at first stated; that subscrip- 
tions might be left with the bookseller, Buisson, and that the 
first number would appear about April 20. 

This seemed to the authorities "the last degree of audacity," 
and they immediately took steps to show Brissot that he had 
made a serious mistake in assuming that any such ideas could 
be carried out. The lieutenant of the police and the director- 
general of the book trade first warned the authorized journals 
to make no announcement of the prospectus in question. They 
then dispatched a circular letter to the inspectors of the book 
trade, urging them to take all measures within their power to 
stop the circulation of the prospectus and the printing and dis- 
tribution of the journal.^ These measures were effective at 
least in frightening Buisson who, it had been announced, was 
to receive the subscriptions, for he promptly disavowed his 
connection with Brissot's newspaper and declared that his 
name had been used without his consent.^ He seems subse- 

1 See the prospectus as quoted in Tourneux, Bibliographie de Vhistoire de 
Paris pendant la Revolution frangaise, ii, 500. 

* Lettre de Maissemy, Archives nationales, v^ 551. 

' This claim appears to be true, for, in his protest to Maissemy, of April 13 
(Archives nationales, \\ 551), he, Buisson, incloses a copy of a letter which reads 



A JOURNALIST 115 

quently to have recovered from his fright, for when the paper 
began to appear regularly, it was at his shop that subscrip- 
tions were received.^ 

Brissot himself was not at all daunted, and on the 6th of 
May he boldly published the first number of the Patriote Fran- 
gais. It appeared as a tiny sheet of eight duodecimo pages and 
consisted of two parts : an account of the opening of the States- 
General at Versailles, and a discussion of the cahier of the third 
estate of Paris, in which the public was urged not to be dis- 
couraged in spite of the attitude of the king and Necker to- 
ward the third estate. Meanwhile Brissot's cause was becoming 
a general one. Other newspapers were being established and 
the authorities thus had to contend with a rapidly rising tide 
of opposition to their power. To meet it, they re-inforced the 
circular to the inspectors of the book trade, which was directed 
especially against Brissot, by a general decree of the royal coun- 
cil which forbade the unauthorized announcement for distribu- 
tion of any new newspaper whatever.^ 

This decree Brissot could not ignore, as he had the previous 
orders. To continue the publication of his paper was for the 
moment clearly impossible, and he reluctantly addressed a letter 
to his subscribers, informing them that the publication of the 
Patriote Frangais was stopped. But, he assured them, the sus- 
pension would be but temporary; he was preparing a memoir to 
the States-General on the subject, and the first thing the States- 
General would do, as soon as it was organized, would doubtless 
be to establish freedom of the press. In this memoir he made 

in part: "Ci-joint M[onsieur] le prospectus d'un J[oiirn]al sur lequel jai cru 
devoir imprimer voire nom pour recevoir les subscriptions et que je vais faire dis- 
tribuer. Je ne pense pas qu'il puisse Sprouver aucune difficult^ puisque^en y 
destinant moi memc mon nom, je me rends responsable de tout ce qui sera im- 
primS dans ce journal." 

^ They soon came to a break, however. For the dissolution of their con- 
nection, see Archives nationales, v^ 553; also the Patriote Frangais, September 
14, 1789. Avis important de M. Brissot de Warville aux souscripteurs de ce 
journal. 

2 Quoted in Tourneux, Bibliographie, n, 502. See also Lettre aux souscrip- 
teurs. May 12, 1789. 



116 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

an ardent plea for such freedom. There could be no free con- 
stitution without it, he declared. Moreover, it was a natural 
right necessary for the States-General and necessary for the 
government. To be efiPective it must be given freely and fully, 
and all newspapers ought to be allowed to be sent by post with- 
out any previous permission. In giving such freedom there 
was no occasion to fear its abuse, for too great license could be 
prevented by special laws. Their execution, moreover, should 
be intrusted to independent tribunals and not left to arbitrary 
rules of the ministers. Finally, in view of these principles, he 
demanded freedom to publish the Patriate Frangais.^ Although 
he did not receive a formal decision from the States-General 
in his favor, 2 the events of July established freedom of the 
press de facto, and without waiting for its establishment de 
jure, on July 28 he again started his newspaper, and issued 
the second number, the first of the uninterrupted series.^ Thus 
was established the Patriote Frangais, one of the most impor- 
tant newspapers of the period of the French Revolution. It was 
true to the motto printed at the head of each number: "A free 
newspaper is a sentinel who always stands on guard for the 
people." Indeed, to quote the ardent republican, Manuel, it 
" was theirs/ sentinel who cried Constitution, Truth, Liberty." * 
Of liberty in all its forms the Patriote Frangais was con- 
sistently the champion. Throughout the session of the Con- 
stituent Assembly it opposed those who would emphasize the 
constitution at the expense of the declaration of rights, and 
maintained that the declaration of rights was, on the contrary, 
the ideal to which the constitution ought to conform. Under 

* Memoir e aux Stais-GenSraux, June, 1789. 

* On May 19, Maissemy, the director-general of the book trade, made what 
was virtually a confession of complete defeat on the part of the authorities, by 
issuing an order which permitted newspapers to publish the proceedings of the 
Assembly but forbade them to make any commentary or reflections. Avenel, 
Histoire de la presse franqaise, 48. 

* The delay was probably due in part to the active role which he had played 
in the election of representatives of the third estate in Paris. Tourneux, ii, 
503. See also p. 94. 

* Quoted in Hatin, Bibliographie de la presse periodique, 142. 



A JOURNALIST 117 

the Legislative Assembly and the Convention it became the 
leading organ of the Girondins in opposition to the Mountain, 
and finally came to an end with the fall of the Girondins. It 
was at the same time "the scourge of the court and the terror 
of the terrorists." ^ 

In its form and content the Patriate Frangais compared fa- 
vorably with the best newspapers of the time. Despite the 
legal difficulties encountered and despite numerous other hin- 
drances then incident to the publishing of a first-class journal, 
Brissot not only managed to continue his newspaper without 
interruption but to make some improvements in his original 
plan. Instead of appearing only four times a week as was an- 
noimced in the original prospectus, it was published every day 
but Sunday, and from November 1, 1789, on Sundays also; 
and instead of a duodecimo sheet, it came out as a large quarto 
of four pages to which supplements were frequently added. ^ 
From the first it paid particular attention to the National As- 
sembly, and while not attempting to give verbatim reports, de- 
voted much space to comments and observations upon its pro- 
ceedings. Even this did not satisfy some of Brissot's readers 
and he was reproached for not giving more details. In reply he 
urged the wide scope of his journal as an excuse and complained 
that it was unfair to compare his newspaper, "which embraced 
all that patriotism embraced," with the Moniteur which made 
the reports of the debates its almost exclusive business. His aim 
certainly was extensive. He proposed, according to both his 
announcements, to do five things: (1) to set forth facts faith- 
fully; (2) to reproduce all the publications of the government 
and to outline the debates of the States-General; (3) to register 
the transactions of the provincial assemblies; (4) to discuss 
current questions, and (5) to review political pamphlets. In 
his second prospectus he announced further that he would in- 
clude in his newspaper the results of his researches on the con- 
stitutions of England and of the United States. After the first 

^ Hatin, Bibliographie de la presse periodique, 143. 
2 January 1, 1791, the size was enlarged. 



118 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

few months he was able to carry out fairly well this extensive 
plan, and about the first of February, 1791, he made still further 
improvements, and included regularly a column on the money 
market and a list of the current plays. Besides its extensive 
reports of the proceedings of the National Assembly, the Pa- 
triote Frangais paid much attention to the municipal affairs 
of Paris. This was particularly true during the period of Bris- 
sot's career as a municipal politician, when the concerns of the 
city government naturally occupied a large share of his inter- 
est. A special column was devoted to Paris; the proceedings of 
the municipal assemblies were reported and the policy of the 
city government defended, especially in the case of the Comite 
des Recherches. But the Patriote Frangais by no means con- 
fined its attention to Paris. It also took a keen interest in the 
course of the Revolution in the provinces and followed the 
development of local government throughout France. In these 
particulars it was not so different from some of the other jour- 
nals, but in the amount of attention it paid to the cause of the 
negro and to American affairs it stands alone. It was in fact 
the organ of the Societe des Amis des Noirs, publishing its ad- 
dresses, defending its policy, and attacking its opponents. As 
for his interest in the new world Brissot had already pointed 
out in his prospectus that the Patriote Frangais was to be the 
means for spreading abroad information about America and 
for impressing upon the public the ideas that he had gained 
from his own experience. Hardly a number appeared in which 
he did not make some reference to the United States. He 
covered the whole range of the subject, from an advertisement 
by a man who was looking for a partner in his Kentucky lands 
to a discussion of the fundamental principles of the American 
constitution. In everything connected with the establishment 
of the new government of the United States he was especially 
interested. He approved of Washington's cabinet appoint- 
ments,^ printed a copy of his first Thanksgiving proclamation,^ 
and reviewed the proceedings of Congress at Philadelphia. Yet 
» Patriote Frangais, November 26, 1789. « Ibid., January 18, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 119 

it was not as a matter of merely abstract interest that Brissot 
referred so frequently to America; it was rather that its recent 
history might serve as a precedent to France. He praised the 
democratic spirit of the United States in proscribing all titles 
of nobility; he commended their tolerance for establishing free- 
dom of religion;^ when plans for the municipal government 
of Paris were under discussion, he argued, from the separation 
of national, state, and city afiFairs in the United States, that 
the drawing up of the plan belonged not to the National As- 
sembly, but to the city itself; and when, at the opening of the 
Legislative Assembly, the question was raised whether they 
should have few or many committees, he made use of the 
example of the American Congress as a weighty argument in 
favor of having as few as possible.^ 

This wide range of contents appealed to a variety of readers, 
and the Patriate Frangais became very popular. Its style was 
perhaps not equal in merit to its contents. Like his other works 
it showed a lack of a sense of humor and of a light touch; but 
if wanting in the wit and brilliancy of Desmoulins's Revolu- 
tions de France et de Brabant or the virility of Prudliomme's 
Revolutions de Paris it was a decided improvement on Brissot 's 
earlier writings, both in force and vigor. He was obliged, how- 
ever, to defend himself against the charge of too great serious- 
ness. "People have said to me," he wrote, "that I was too 
serious; they want me to make fun, to chaff and to draw cari- 
catures. That role does not suit me; one must be himself, and 
if the French people fall again into the taste for political and 
literary buffooneries, a writer whose only desire is to be useful, 
ought never to lend himself to such things." ^ Brissot might 
indeed be charged with a lack of humor, but he certainly could 
not be accused of the scurrility and personal invective which 
marked the Pere Duchesne and the Ami du Peuple. Whatever 
the Patriote Frangais was or was not, it never, at least, lacked 

* Patriote Frangais, May 7, 1790. 

^ Discours sur V organisation des comitis, October, 1791. See p. 226. 

' Patriote Frangais, April 9, 1790. 



120 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

in dignity. Its radical stand naturally brought it into conflict 
with the conservative press, but although it had numerous 
sharp controversies with royalist and moderate journals, when 
it concerned personalities, it was generally inclined to limit 
itself to the defensive. In matters of general policy it could 
count on the invariable support of the Courrier des Diparte- 
ments and the Chronique de Paris and the invariable hostility 
of the Actes des Apotres, the Journal de Paris, the Journal ge- 
neral de la cour et de la ville, and later of the Ami du Peuple; 
while the Revolutions de France et de Brabant and the Revolu- 
tions de Paris approved and criticized in turn. His most seri- 
ous conflicts arose from his zealous attacks on despotism and 
more than once led to accusations for libel. 

Besides carrying on the Patriote Frangais, Brissot was one 
of the collaborators of the Chronique du Mois. This publica- 
tion which appeared monthly from November, 1791, to July, 
1793, was not, properly speaking, a newspaper at all, but merely 
a series of essays.^ It was founded, so the prospectus set forth, 
to further the public good. It might more truly have been said, 
to further the interests of the Girondin party. To this periodi- 
cal Brissot made a number of contributions, but they consisted 
chiefly of reproductions of articles which had already appeared 
elsewhere, and hence do not add materially to the knowledge 
of Brissot as journalist or politician.^ 

^ La Chronique du Mots ou Les Cahiers patriotiques de E. Claviere, C. Con- 
dorcet, L. Mercier, A. Auger, J. Oswald, N. Bonneville, J. Bidermann, A. Brous- 
sonet, A. Guy-Kersaint, J. P. Brissot, J. Ph. Garran de Coulon, J. Dussaulx, 
F. Lanthenas, et Cdlot d'Herbois, November, 1791, to July, 1793. 

2 Each number was headed by a full-page portrait of one of the collaborators 
of the paper or of some man prominent in public affairs. Brissot's portrait ap- 
pears in the number for July, 1792. His part, advertised to consist of "some of 
his eloquent speeches upon our rights which he knows so well how to defend," 
was made up of nine contributions as follows: — 

(a) Sur les reproches qu'on fait a V Assemblee nationale, March, 1792. 

(6) Sur la justice de la guerre contre VAutriche, May, 1792. 

(c) Observations sur Helvetius, July, 1792. A criticism of Helvetius' theory 
— that all passions have their origin in the physical senses, in love of pleasure, 
or in aversion to pain — as being on too low a plane. 

(d) Politics de Paul, August, 1792. An extract from his work: Lettres sur 
Saint Paul. 



A JOURNALIST 121 

In carrying on his own paper Brissot was in turn assisted by 
numerous collaborators: by Claviere, with whom he had long 
been on terms of intimacy; by Gregoire, his fellow worker in 
the Societe des Amis des Noirs; by Petion, the Mayor of Paris; ^ 
Thomas Paine, the Anglo-American; and, above all, by the 
Rolands and a little group of friends who centered around them 
and which included Blot, the friend of Brissot's childhood,^ 
Lanthenas,^ Bosc,^ and Ban gal des Issarts.^ According to M. 
Perroud something over one hundred contributions to the Pa- 
triote Frangais may be attributed to members of this group. 
Brissot's acquaintance with the Rolands dated from the pub- 
lication of his book De la France et des Etats Unis. In this work 
Brissot frequently quoted from Roland, praised his learning 
and courage, and when the book was published sent him a 
copy. There resulted a lively correspondence between Bris- 
sot and the Rolands. Through Bosc and Lanthenas, whom 

(e) Sur les motifs de ceux qui defendant la monarchic et qui calomnaient le 
republicanisme. J. P. Brissot a N. Bonneville, October, 1792. 

(/) A tous les republicains de France : sur le Societe des Jacobins de Paris, 
1792, already published in pamphlet form. 

ig) De la marche des agitateurs, January, 1793. 

(h) Sur le terns [sic], March, 1793. 

(i) De quelques erreurs dans les idees et dans les mots relatifs a la revolution 
frangaise, March, 1793. 

^ Petion y faisait paraitre les lettres, avis, observations qu'il avail a publier 
comme maire de Paris. Vatel, Charlotte Corday et les Girondins, i, 240, note. 

2 See p. 7. 

' Frangois Lanthenas, a physician and author of numerous political pam- 
phlets, was born in 1754 and died in 1799. He was a friend of the Rolands, and 
under the first Roland ministry was given the first place in the department of 
public instruction. Although arrested with the Girondins he escaped proscrip- 
tion and was elected to the Council of 500. 

* Louis Augustin Ouillaume Bosc was a French naturalist, born in 1759 and 
died in 1828. He was a friend of Madame Roland and one of her correspond- 
ents, and under the Roland ministry became director of the post-office. He 
remained attached to Madame Roland, risked his life by visiting her in prison, 
and preserved the manuscript of her memoirs. He escaped the guillotine and 
under the Directory was sent on a diplomatic mission to the United States. 

^ Jean Henri Bangal des Issarts was born in 1750 and died in 1826. He rep- 
resented Auvergne in the National Assembly and founded a society of the 
Jacobins at Clermont. Later, he became a friend of Madame Roland and an 
avowed republican and an ally of the Girondins. 



122 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Brissot came to know at Paris, he was brought into still more 
friendly relations with them though without ever having seen 
them; and when he projected his newspaper, he found his new 
friends ready to sympathize with his plans and to help him by 
their correspondence. They lent copies of the Patriote Fran- 
qais to their friends, tried to increase its circulation, and sent 
him articles for publication on the course of the Revolution at 
Lyons. He seems to have been especially delighted with the 
contributions of Madame Roland, who was, he declared, " both 
well informed and of a truly strong character." He even ven- 
tured to insert in his newspaper passages from her letters to 
Bosc and Lanthenas which had been passed on to him; ^ and 
when at a later period she criticized him for not being sufficiently 
radical, he took the criticism with good grace and attacked the 
royalist party in Lyons with more vehemence. ^ While the 
Rolands were writing for the Patriote Frangais of the struggle 
in Lyons against despotism, Lanthenas was writing against 
despotism in general, his chief articles being on the freedom of 
the press and on the organization of popular societies.^ Bangal 
meanwhile kept the Patriote Frangais informed of events in 
Clermont. In turn, Brissot supported the interests of his 
friends in local and national elections.^ 

The Rolands were his chief correspondents, but the financial 
support for his journal came from a man named LePage, to 
whom, apparently, he left much of the business management. 
LePage is said to have made money out of it for himself, but 
Brissot, according to Madame Roland, instead of likewise 
profiting, was content with the small salary allowed him by 
his partner and came out of the enterprise as poor as when he 

' For the details of their early correspondence, see Perroud, Lettres de Madame 
Roland, ii, 5.5 and note, 61, 6i and note, 77, 78, 95, 114; M6moires de Madame 
Roland, i, 61, 191, 192, and Brissot et les Roland, Collaboration des Roland au 
Patriote Frangais, in La Revolution frangaise, xxxiv, 403, May, 1898. 

2 Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 174, 175, note. 

' See, for example, the Patriote Frangais of February 5, 14, 28, 1791. 

* See article by Perroud in La Revolution frangaise, xxxiv, 403-22, May, 
1898. 



A JOURNALIST 123 

went into it.^ In true French fashion the members of his family- 
assisted in the business, his mother-in-law and one of his sisters- 
in-law helping in the office.^ His main collaborator, and most 
of the time his partner, was Girey-Dupre,^ a young journalist 
of Girondin sympathies. On several occasions Brissot turned 
over to Girey-Dupre a considerable share in the responsibility 
for the newspaper. The first time was at the opening of the 
Legislative Assembly, when, quite overcome by the responsi- 
bilities of his new position as legislator, he announced that "in 
order to devote himself entirely to the important functions to 
which the choice of his fellow citizens called him," he would 
abandon the chief editorship to his colleague.^ But it was not 
long before he realized the importance of the post he had sur- 
rendered, and re-assumed control of that part of his paper 
dealing with the reports of the National Assembly.^ Again, 
during the trial of the king it was Girey-Dupre who was en- 
trusted with the reports on the ground that Brissot while act- 
ing as judge had no right to express his opinions editorially.^ 
Finally, when the decree of the Assembly on March 9, 1793, 
forbade the members of the Convention to conduct news- 
papers,^ Brissot definitely turned over the management of the 
paper to his partner. Three months later, with the fall of the 
Girondins and the flight of both Brissot and Girey-Dupre, the 
Patriote Frangais came to an end. The partnership in the con- 
duct of the journal naturally raised the question of respon- 

^ MSmoires de Madame Roland, i, 197-98. Brissot felt that LePage did not 
always treat him fairly. See, for instance, a letter of Madame Brissot, of Octo- 
ber 22, 1791 iCorrespondance, 276). Again, in writing to her brother, January 
15, 1792, she says, " Le Journal ne rapport que ^,000 livres et mon mari a de- 
pens^ en impressions 100 louis." Correspondance, 279. 

2 Article by M. Perroud, La Famille de Madame Brissot in La Revolution 
Frangaise, Lix, 270-74, September, 1910. 

^ Joseph Marie Girey-Dupre was born in 1769. He cast in his fortunes with 
Brissot and the Girondin party and, after May 31, 1793, was proscribed, and 
was executed November 21, 1793, for his connection with the Patriote Fran- 
gais. See pp. 233 n., 329. 

* Patriote Frangais, September 23, 1791. 

5 Ibid., January 1, 1792. « Ibid., December 12, 1792. 

^ Moniteur, March 11, 1793. 



124 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

sibility. It came up apropos of an article which had appeared 
in the Patriate Frangais reflecting on Camille Desmouhns, who 
proceeded to call Brissot to account. His defense was that the 
article under discussion was Girey-Dupre's. To this Desmou- 
hns replied, with his Jean Pierre Brissot demasque : " It is of no 
use to say that the diatribe is not yours, that it is acknowl- 
edged and signed by Girey-Dupre. The master is responsible 
for the misdemeanor of the servant. It is convenient for a 
journalist to take M. Girey thus on the croup to cover his 
back, but I jump to seize the bridle because it is really you 
who hold it and it is you who gave me that dressing." 

Desmoulins was right. Whoever may have been technically 
and legally responsible for certain numbers, the fact remains 
that from first to last the Patriate Frangais represents Brissot's 
own ideas as a politician and his influence as a journalist. The 
period of its greatest influence was perhaps that of the Legisla- 
tive Assembly, but during the session of the Constituent it was 
the center of Brissot's interest and his chief means of expres- 
sion. In the Patriots Frangais, therefore, can be traced Bris- 
sot's attitude toward the constitution in the making, his views 
on the destructive and constructive work of the National As- 
sembly, his relation to the progress of the Revolution, his part 
in the republican crisis of 1791, and finally, his acceptance of 
the constitution and of constitutional monarchy. 

In his Plan de conduite Brissot had declared that the making 
of a constitution was not within the province of the States- 
General, but the opposition of the court had changed the situa- 
tion ; and if Brissot had been a member of the States-General, 
— now become the National Assembly, — he would most cer- 
tainly have joined in the oath taken by the members not to 
separate till they had made a constitution for France. The 
drawing-up of this constitution was now the chief work of the 
Assembly, and party divisions, already outlined, began to show 
themselves more distinctly. They turned on the fundamental 
question whether reform should be brought about by modifying 
the old system of government or by developing an entirely new 



A JOURNALIST 125 

system. In this tremendous task Brissot's sympathies were 
with that section of the left well toward the extreme which at 
first had supported the monarchy, on condition that the king's 
power be strictly limited, but which now began to incline to- 
ward a republic. He took an absorbing interest in the pro- 
ceedings of the Assembly, reported the debates at length, espe- 
cially those which represented his own views, and sought in 
every way to influence public opinion. He was especially ac- 
tive in urging American, rather than English example upon 
France. The Constitution of the United States seemed to him 
a well-nigh perfect model, and the necessity of drawing up a 
new form of government for France gave him the chance to 
plan for a French adaptation of that model. He was also 
interested in the state constitutions, and his admiration was 
shared, though perhaps in a less degree, by many of the leaders 
of the Assembly. Editions of these American constitutions, 
both state and national, had been published in France, and 
there had grown up a strong feeling among such men as Lafay- 
ette and De Saint-Etienne ^ that in the fundamental principles 
of her proposed constitution France could find no better 
model than America. While these men were supporting Ameri- 
can ideas by their votes in the National Assembly, Brissot was 
guiding and directing public opinion toward the same end. The 
recent American experience in constitution-making was a sub- 
ject in which every oiie was interested. As Brissot had enjoyed 
the advantage of travel in America, he was regarded as an 
authority, and his opinions were listened to with respect, even 
where they were not followed. As a recent writer has pointed 
out, the precise extent of American influence is not suscep- 
tible of measurement; ^ its working, however, may be observed 
with profit. 

^ Jean Paul Rabaut Saint-Etienne, bom in 1743, was a Protestant pastor. 
He was a member of the States-General and of the Convention, and stood al- 
ways for moderation and tolerance. As a member of the committee of twelve, 
which provoked the revolution of May 31, he was outlawed and fled. On his 
discovery he was executed. 

* Aulard, Histoire politique de la Revolution, 19-28. See the article by 



126 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The first subject of discussion was a declaration of rights: 
what rights should be included and whether there should be a 
declaration at all. That any one should question for a moment 
such a necessity seemed to Brissot absurd. "A declaration of 
rights," he declared, "is a chapter as necessary for a constitu- 
tion as a foundation for a house. The constitution may change; 
the declaration of rights ought never to change." ^ He also 
objected strenuously to Mirabeau's proposition that the con- 
sideration of the declaration of rights might well be put off till 
the constitution was finished. If the declaration were the 
foundation it must of necessity be laid first.^ Mirabeau, if not 
convinced, yielded to the pressure of opinion and presented a 
draft of a declaration. This draft met Brissot's approval in 
that it was short and clear; he objected, however, to a state- 
ment that it was drawn up in the name of the representatives. 
It ought to be in the name of the French people. And the 
whole thing ought, he complained, to be dra^voi up more rapidly. 
Why could not the Assembly take example from the prompt- 
ness with which the Americans produced their Declaration 
of Independence? * 

The two most important problems in the formation of the 
constitution itself concerned the distribution of power between 
the king and the legislative body and the extent to which de- 
mocracy was to prevail. The former involved the question of one 
chamber or two, the degree of independence of the legislative 
body, the veto, the right of declaring peace and war and the 
relation of the ministry to the legislatm-e. 

On the question of a bicameral versus a unicameral system, 
Brissot supported Buzot's plan for a single chamber divided 
into two sections. He was careful to explain, however, that in 
so doing he was not advocating anything which resembled the 
English parliament. The ignorant and the unreflecting, he de- 
Henry E. Bourne, entitled " American Constitutional Precedents in the French 
National Assembly," in the American Historical Review, April, 1903, viii, 
466-86. 

1 Patriate Frangais, August 1, 1789. 

2 Ibid., August 20, 1789. ' Ibid., August 24, 1789. 



A JOURNALIST 127 

clared, had raised the cry that it would mean two chambers. 
Their assertion, he argued, was not true. Aside from the num- 
ber two there was nothing in common between the two sections 
proposed and the two chambers of the EngHsh Parhament. In 
the first place the members of the House of Lords and of the 
House of Commons were not drawn from the same classes, and 
the division was permanent; whereas the members of the two 
sections in the proposed French legislature were drawn from 
the same body and the division into two sections would be but 
temporary, being made every two months and by lot. Hence 
there would be no reason to fear intrigue or any esprit de corps. 
In the second place the object of the two chambers was both to 
discuss and to vote; whereas the object of the two sections 
would be only to discuss, the voting being done in the united 
assembly. In the third place the House of Lords had a veto on 
the House of Commons; whereas in the plan of the sections 
neither would have a veto upon the other. ^ But whatever the 
number or the division of the chambers, Brissot stood firmly 
for the permanency of the legislative assembly, by which he 
meant annual meetings which should convene regularly with- 
out being called.^ 

Closely connected with the question whether there were to 
be two chambers — one to have a veto on the other — was a 
question of another kind of veto, that exercised by the king 
upon the legislative botly. This brought up the whole subject 
of the relative proportion of power to be given to the king and 
to the Assembly. Opinion was sharply divided: one section 
demanded that the power of the king be reduced to the nar- 
rowest possible limits, while the other stood for a strong execu- 
tive. Of the former section Brissot was one of the most ardent 
advocates, while the other was ably represented by Mirabeau, 
who declared that in order to make the constitution workable, 
the executive must be given considerable power. To this end 
Mirabeau proposed to give the king an absolute veto and some 

1 Patriote Frangais, May 24, 1791. 

* Observations sur la necessitS d'6tablir . . . des comites de correspondance, 6. 



128 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

real injQuence in making peace and declaring war as well, and 
also to have the ministry chosen from the legislative body. 
"The absolute veto," he maintained, "would not give too 
much power to the king, because any long-continued and per- 
sistent opposition to the wishes of the people would result in 
revolution, and therefore public opinion might safely be trusted 
as a sufficient check to the apparently arbitrary power*. in- 
volved in giving the king an absolute veto." This opinion 
Brissot vigorously combated in the Patriote Frangais. In the 
issue of September 15, 1789, he took up a speech by Mirabeau 
on the subject and assailed it point by point. His argument 
deserves quotation at length, not only on account of the im- 
portance of the subject, but also because of the frankness with 
which he expressed republican sentiments. 

"Mirabeau," the Patriote Frangais declared, "begins by say- 
ing that the greater a nation is the more active ought the exec- 
utive power to be: from which comes the necessity of a mo- 
narchical government in large states. . . . 

"This is an error sanctioned by Montesquieu, of which one 
is disabused if one reflects on the history of America. It is not 
the number of individuals nor the extent of country which 
demands a monarchical government. The moral state of a na- 
tion is the only thing which ought to decide its government. 
If America had fifty million inhabitants of whom four fifths 
were laborers, as is the case to-day, the republican form of gov- 
ernment would be the natural one for it. Moreover, a republic 
like that of the Americans has no need of this great activity 
in the government, because it is a government of peace in 
harmony with society, while in a monarchy, the government is 
constantly at war with society, and consequently needs great 
strength. I do not say on this account that France ought not to 
have a monarchical government, but I do say that it is not on 
account of its population but because of its moral maladies. 

" The prince is the protector of the people.^ 

^ In this and the following italicized statements Brissot is citing Mira- 
beau. 



A JOURNALIST 129 

"He may and he may not be. The representatives may be 
and they may not: they are under the hand of the people. 

"// the king does not have the sanction he will he obliged to use 
armed jorce against the 'people. 

"Rarely, and if he does have it, he will turn it against them 
very often. Why.? For the same reason that for six centuries 
has kept us in slavery. The man who does not take an unfair 
advantage when he can do it with impunity is an angel. 

" The representatives may he badly chosen. 

"But they are chosen everywhere at the same time. They 
are changed at the end of two years, and if they have made a 
bad law, their successors change it. The prince, on the con- 
trary, is not chosen; he holds his office for life. 

" The grandeur of the prince depends on the prosperity of the 
people. 

" A political fable on which we have been brought up since 
the making of books began. These protectors of the people 
have even amused themselves (with the exception of a few) 
in heaping up debts, taxes, vexations . . . the true protection 
of the people is in its representatives and especially in the con- 
stituent power frequently exercised. 

" The prince is the perpetual representative of the people, a^ its 
deputies are its temporary representatives. Why not give them the 
same part in the law ? 

"Because the one is a perpetual representative and not 
chosen, and the others are chosen and for short terms, and are 
consequently less dangerous; because the latter have only one 
kind of power, and the other, if he had a veto, would have a 
terrible power joined to the most terrible of all powers — the 
executive. 

" If the prince has not the veto, what will prevent the representa- 
tives from prolonging their authority and holding it indefinitely ? 

"The constitution, which preserves in the hands of the peo- 
ple the right of reforming it and of choosing special assemblies 
at fixed terms and thus putting a stop to the usurpations of its 
representatives. . . . 



130 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

" What is there to fear from the royal veto if the taxes and the 
existence of the army are provided for annually ? 

" Everything, for the people will never dare to stop the pay- 
ment of the taxes, or to dismiss the army. The evil which will 
result from this state of things will fall more upon the people 
than upon the king. 

"Finally, if the Prince does not have the veto, and if he is 
obliged to sanction a bad law, the only remedy is in insurrection. 

"An error. The representatives who follow can change the 
law, according to the will of the people." 

Brissot objected also to the alternative involved in a sus- 
pensive veto which would necessitate the reenactment of any 
vetoed measure by the next two legislatures. In opposition 
to both alternatives, he proposed a veto like that given to the 
President of the United States, which would check legislation, 
but only temporarily. If ever Brissot longed to have a voice in 
the Assembly it was that he might plead for this American 
veto. Lacking such opportunity, he tried through the columns 
of the Patriote Frangais to arouse public opinion on the matter. 
It was so reasonable, he urged; it prevented hasty and ill-con- 
sidered legislation on the one hand, and on the other gave no 
dangerous power to the President. It only necessitated further 
discussion and could not prevent the passing of any law which 
was really good and widely demanded.^ 

On the question of the right of declaring war and making 
peace, Brissot and Mirabeau again came into clash. As in the 
matter of the veto, Mirabeau exerted all his energy to securing 
some effective authority for the king. Realizing that it was 
hopeless to propose that the king alone should have the right of 
declaring war, he contented himself with a compromise, and 
proposed instead that the right of making peace and declaring 
war belonged to the nation, but that in the case of threatened 
hostility the king should be allowed to make preparation for 
war and afterward to appeal to the legislative body for sanc- 
tion of his course of action. ^ This proposal to leave a virtual 

» Patriote Frangais, September 4, 1789. * Moniteur, May 21, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 131 

initiative to the king, aroused great indignation, which Brissot 
was one of the first to voice. Mirabeau's plan, he declared, was 
not clear, since it did not make sufficiently plain the line of 
demarkation between the executive and the legislative, and it 
ignored the rights of the nation. The debates on this subject 
Brissot reported at length, but with perhaps more than usual 
partisanship. He spoke, for instance, of the miserable subtle- 
ties of a Malouet who pretended that "almost all wars were 
undertaken in the interests of the people rather than by the 
caprices of kings," and supported Petion in his argument that 
under a king who exercised the right of making war, liberty 
could not long exist. ^ In spite of this opposition Mirabeau 
secured the adoption of the fundamental principle of his bill. 

On the question of choosing the ministry from the legisla- 
tive body Brissot was again opposed to Mirabeau. To estab- 
lish such a connection would obviously bring about greater 
harmony between the executive and the legislative depart- 
ments of the government, but Brissot strenuously opposed it, 
on the ground that it savored too much of the English con- 
stitution and that in any case it would give too much power to 
the executive. In answer to Mirabeau's argument that under 
existing conditions such separation would result in anarchy, 
he pointed to the example of the United States. "Admit the 
ministers to the Assembly," he declared, "and you will give 
them the means of executing the schemes which they have de- 
vised in their cabinets. . . . Such is the history of the parlia- 
ment of England [ministerial corruption]. It is because the 
United States were familiar with that daily experience that 
they have forever excluded the secretaries of state from the 
meetings of Congress. If, then, in a country where there is 
little opportunity for corruption, and where there are no pen- 
sions or lucrative places, and where assemblies are frequently 
renewed ... If , I say, in that country the influence of minis- 
ters is feared, how much more ought it to be feared in a coun- 
try where corruption and the most frightful luxury reign? " ^ 

1 Patriote Franqais, May 18-21, 1790. ^ mj^^^ November 8, 1789. 



132 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

"Further," he argued, "ministers not only should be al- 
lowed no chance for control of the legislative body; but, on the 
contrary, the legislative body should have that control over the 
ministers which would come from some voice in choosing them. 
The choice and dismissal of the ministers and ambassadors 
ought not to be left to the king alone, the representatives of the 
people should have something to say in the matter. Leave to 
the king, for instance, the right of naming three or fotu- persons 
for each vacancy, and then let the National Assembly choose 
one from this list. Under the new regime," he added, " it would 
not be difficult to find sufficiently able ministers." Now that 
many of their former functions had been taken over by the 
legislative body no extraordinary ability was needed to fill the 
office. Ordinary intelligence, some knowledge of affairs, dig- 
nity and diligence were quite sufficient.^ 

In the method of amending the constitution Brissot was not 
quite so anxious to follow American example. Indeed, this 
seems to be one of the few cases where he realized that a dif- 
ference in conditions might require a modification in the model 
followed. France, not being a federation of states and having 
a legislative body of one chamber instead of two, lacked the 
machinery for amending the constitution which was employed 
in the United States. However well it might work there, Bris- 
sot feared giving an initiative in changing the constitution to 
the legislative body. As it was not practicable for the people 
themselves, gathered in primary assemblies, to change the 
constitution, conventions should be called. And, as it was not 
desirable to leave the calling of conventions to the very powers 
they were summoned to censure, they ought to be periodic. If 
it were objected that conventions might dare to change the 
fundamental principles of the constitution, this danger, Bris- 
sot replied, would be slight compared with the evils which 
would result from the absence of conventions altogether. One 
method of preventing it would be to take a hint from the 
method employed in the United States, and, while rejecting 
^ Patriate Frangais, September 26, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 133 

the initiative of the legislative body, allow that body to veto 
amendments by a two-thirds vote.^ The arrangement for 
proposing amendments only on the demand of three succes- 
sive legislatures would, on the contrary, he declared, be ab- 
solutely ineffective, since three successive legislatures would 
never want the same thing. ^ Brissot's ideas did not prevail on 
all these important questions — a unicameral system being 
adopted instead of the two-sectioned chamber, a really sus- 
pensive veto instead of the modified American system and a 
method of amendment which did not provide for elections at 
fixed periods. On the other hand, his ideas did prevail in the 
manner of choosing the ministers, and on those points where 
his views were not carried out he assisted in forcing a compro- 
mise, and in preventing the complete adoption of Mirabeau's 
plans. The constitution in its solution of the relation between 
the king and the legislature conformed far more closely to the 
ideas of Brissot than to those of Mirabeau. This was unfor- 
tunate, as the outcome proved. 

With the solution of the other main question — how far the 
constitution should be democratic in character — Brissot was far 
from satisfied. As might have been expected from his attitude 
in his early writings, he not only demanded that the power of 
the king be weakened, but that democracy prevail to the great- 
est possible extent. To this end he supported with all his might 
that small section of the left of the Assembly which stood for 
a democratic as opposed to a bourgeois constitution. In his 
Bibliotheque philosopkique he had said that under a monarchy 
he would be content with civil equality,^ but he now demanded 
political equality. Indeed the division into active and passive 
citizens seemed to him not only unwise, but positively iniqui- 
tous, and through the columns of the Patriote Frangais he stren- 
uously and repeatedly objected to all legislation based upon it. 
To withhold the right of suffrage from passive citizens was, he 

^ Discours sur les conventions, 8 aoUt, 1791, 
2 Patriote Frangais, September 5, 1791. 
* Bibliotheque philosophique, in, 235. 



134 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

declared, a violation of the principle laid down by the Assembly 
that a man can be subject only to those laws to which he or his 
representatives have given their consent. Can the Assembly 
thus violate that principle with regard to any one class of citi- 
zens without hopelessly contradicting itself? he asked. Why, 
to take a particular instance, should domestics be specifically 
excluded? Were they not men? They were in a state of de- 
pendence, it was asserted; but that was true of many profes- 
sions.^ Another vicious law, he declared, was that providing 
that the national guard should be composed only of active citi- 
zens, and to enforce his point he published, though with some 
omissions, a vehement letter of Madame Roland in protest.^ 
He even went so far as to assert that some of those who had 
striven for this division into active and passive citizens, had 
done it with malice aforethought, with the secret purpose of 
creating in the passive citizens an agency which might be used 
in the interests of despotism. 

A representation which rested on territory and taxes, as well as 
on population, he assailed as likewise undemocratic and quoted 
at length Petion's arguments to prove that since men alone were 
represented, population should be the sole basis for national 
representation.* He objected also to the indirect method of 
election to the legislative body; it was better than destroy- 
ing the influence of the people by two intermediary degrees in 
the elections, but it would have been better yet to follow the 
example of England and America, and have elections directly 
by the people.^ While arguing for the rights of the people in the 
matter of elections, he took up the cause of the Protestants, 
Jews, and actors, and was one of the first to plead, both in his 
newspaper and before the city council, that they be given civil 

^ Patriote Franqais, October 24, 1789. 

^ Madame Roland wrote: "J'ai vu aujovrd'hui cette assemhUe quon ne 
saurait appeler nationale {cest I'enfer meme avec toutes ses horreurs), la raison, 
la verite, la justice y sont etouffees, konnies (conspuees) ." The words between the 
parentheses are omitted in the Patriote Franqais. See Lettres de Madame 
Roland, ii, 269-71 and note, 271; also Patriote Franqais, April 30, 1791. 

» Patriote Franqais, November 10, 1789. ■* Ibid., November 18, 1789. 



A JOURNALIST 135 

rights.^ The power accorded to an hereditary, immovable, and 
non-elective regency he also objected to, as another thoroughly 
undemocratic feature of the constitution, criticized Barnave 
severely for supporting it, and praised Petion warmly, as the 
one man who had opposed it.^ 

In spite of the efforts of the left in the Assembly, represented 
by such men as Petion, and by such journalists as Brissot, a 
constitution was finally adopted which, if it greatly limited the 
power of the king, was far from being democratic, and it was 
further decreed that it should go into effect without being sub- 
mitted to the people. To such a decision Brissot had been con- 
stantly opposed as another evidence of an undemocratic spirit. 
In his Plan de conduite he had spoken in favor of the submittal 
to the people,^ and when the constitution was first discussed he 
published an excited letter of Madame Roland on the subject,^ 
and wrote himself with much spirit that not to submit the con- 
stitution to the people seemed to him so dangerous, so destruc- 
tive of a free constitution, that he could not conceive how such 
an idea could find partisans in the Assembly, and especially 
among the defenders of the people.^ But in view of the crisis of 
the summer of 1791, he came to doubt the advisability of sub- 
mitting this particular constitution to the people at a time of 
such general disturbance, and in his Discours sur les conventions 
of August 8, 1791, he wrote that "a ratification just now would 
be impossible, impolitic and dangerous. In fact, the people are 
just emerging from a long period of slavery; they are emerging 
from the tomb. Their eyes are barely open to the light. They 

1 Patriate Frangais, December 24, 26, 1789, and June 15 and 17, 1790. 

2 Ibid., March 23-26, 1791. ' See p. 92. 

* Letter to Brissot of August 3, 1789, printed in the Patriate Frangais of 
August 12: "Au nam de Dieu! gardez-vous bien de declarer que VAssemblee 
Nationale pent fixer irrevocablement la Canstitutian ; il faut, si elle en trace h 
prajet, qu'il soit ensuite envoyS dans toutes les provinces, pour etre adopte, modi- 
fi^, approve par les Constituants. 

' ' L'Assemblee n'est formee que de constituis, qui n'ont pas droit de fixer noire 
sort, ce droit est au peuple, il ne peut ni le ceder, ni le deUguerJ" Lettres de 
Madame Roland, ii, 55. 

^ Patriate Frangais, September 9, 1789. 



136 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

need to learn how to use their organs before judging with 
them." 

Closely connected with the constitution, though not an 
actual part of it, was the new judicial system. The reform of 
justice had been the subject perhaps dearest of all to Brissot's 
heart, and he now watched the development of the new judicial 
organization with the keenest interest, throwing his influence 
always in favor of such organization as would provide for the 
fullest equality and the greatest power in the hands of the 
people. Three general plans were proposed by Thouret, Duport» 
and Sieyes respectively: Thouret 's plan was rather a modifi- 
cation of the system existing under the old regime than a new 
system and allowed the king considerable power in choosing the 
judges. It provided, however, for a jury only in criminal cases. 
Duport on the other hand suppressed all vestige of the past, and 
in building up a new system followed largely English example. 
He provided for juries in civil, as well as in criminal cases, and 
gave the nomination of the judges to the directories and their 
final choice to the people. Sieyes's plan also provided for a thor- 
oughgoing change, its most distinctive feature being the organ- 
ization of juries composed of members of the bar.^ In criticizing 
these plans Brissot spoke with rather more caution than usual. 
He objected to Thouret's scheme as savoring too much of the 
old regime,^ approved of Sieyes's plan in the abstract, but de- 
clared with an apt quotation from Montaigne, that everything 
that emanated from Sieyes would fit in a new world, but was 
less suited to a world where custom was already fixed. ^ Du- 
port's scheme, therefore, as involving both thorough reform 
and practicability seemed to him the best. Brissot admitted 
that the English had had some difficulties with the jury system, 
but thought that they had been exaggerated, and declared him- 
self in favor of the jury for civil as well as for criminal cases. 
The whole matter seems to have been decided with less acri- 
monious discussion and with more unanimity than usual and 

^ See Seligmann, he justice rSvolutionnaire. 

2 Patriate Frangais, March 25, 1790, » Ibid., April 7 and 30, 1790, 



A JOURNALIST 137 

on the whole to have met Brissot's approval. There were other 
features of the proposed judicial system, however, which gave 
rise to considerable debate, namely, the question of tenure of 
office and of circuit judges. To the proposition for life office, 
Brissot objected as a flagrant violation of equality, and re- 
joiced when it was rejected. At the same time he would give 
judges a longer term of office than ordinary administrators, and 
make them reeligible, requiring, however, an interval before 
they could be reelected. This constant reeligibility he declared 
was the one fault in the American Congress and ought to be 
avoided in France.^ He was consequently much disappointed 
to find that the reeligibility of the judges was voted with no 
provision for an interval. He also regretted the decision in 
favor of sedentary judges instead of judges on circuit, which, 
in spite of some English opinion against it, seemed to him 
decidedly preferable.^ But in the main the new system meant 
equality and real justice, and Brissot was fairly content. 

With the development of liberty in relation to the freedom of 
the press, he was less content. As a pamphleteer and journalist 
it had long been to him, and throughout his career in the Revo- 
lution it continued to be, not only a matter of principle but also 
of vital personal interest. He was no mere onlooker, but from 
the moment when he boldly announced his journal and, in the 
face of ministerial opjposition, appealed to the States-General,^ 
he was an active combatant in the forefront of the battle. 
The decree of May 19, by which Maissemy, the general director 
of the book trade, permitted newspapers to publish the pro- 
ceedings of the Assembly, was a virtual recognition of freedom 
of the press, though he tried to save appearances by adding 
that no reflections or commentary on the debates would be 
allowed,^ and the events of July 14 made its de facto establish- 
ment complete. It was some weeks, however, before the action 
of the Assembly provided for freedom of the press de jure. 

^ Pafriote Franqais, May 4, 1790. 

« Ibid., March 31, May 2, 4 and 26, 1790. 

8 See p. 115. * See p. 116. 



138 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

This delay Brissot found very trying and complained bitterly 
that the Assembly was altogether too slow in recognizing 
already existing facts. He was therefore delighted when, on 
August 24, the Assembly voted article eleven of the declaration 
of rights, "that the free communication of his thoughts and 
opinions was one of the most precious rights of man and that 
every citizen was at liberty to speak, write and print freely 
whatever he pleased, being answerable only for the abuse of 
that liberty in the cases determined by law." This was merely 
a declaration ; there remained the diflScult and delicate task of 
formulating the law which was to carry it out. ^ In January, 1790, 
Sieyes came forward with the proposition for a law to the effect 
that if a certain work should excite the people to use violent 
means in order to obtain their demands, the persons responsible 
could be declared guilty of sedition and punished; and further, 
if an article printed within eight days before a seditious outbreak 
should contain false allegations which had excited the sedition, 
the persons responsible should be pursued and punished as 
themselves guilty of sedition. ^ This law Brissot criticized se- 
verely, chiefly upon the ground that sedition itself had not yet 
been defined.^ Moreover he did effective work in preventing 
its passage, by publishing frequent articles against it.^ Just at 
this juncture the quarrel between the Chatelet on the one hand 
and Marat and Danton on the other came to a head and gave 
special point to the discussion of freedom of speech. On ac- 
count of his violent attacks on the moderate party, particu- 
larly on Bailly, Mayor of Paris, the Chatelet had ordered the 
arrest of Marat. It now turned upon Danton for having re- 
sisted that court as illegal and more especially for having him- 
self, in the local assembly, threatened resistance to the authori- 
ties of Paris. Desmoulins in his paper took up the cause of 
Danton and was ably seconded by Brissot. Freedom of thought 

^ For a discussion of this subject see Soderhjehm, Le Regime de la presse. 

* Moniteur, January 23, 1790. ' Patriate Franqais, January 31, 1790. 

* See, for example, the quotation from an article by Kerolio in the Pa- 
triate Franqais of February 3, the address of Robert Pigott in that of February 
10, and the letter from Chaveau de la Garde, February 15, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 139 

would cease to exist, declared the latter, if speeches, whatever 
their character, which were made in the course of a discussion 
in a legislative body could be travestied into flagrant misde- 
meanors.^ And when, a few days later, apropos of an article 
of Marat calling the people to arms, and an article of Des- 
moulins comparing the fete of the federation with a triumph of 
Paulus Emilius, the Assembly ordered an accusation of high 
treason against the journals which had incited insurrection, 
he cried out with horror that the Assembly should have dared 
to pass such a decree against alleged libelists before it had even 
decided in what a libel consisted. And even if they had laid 
down definite principles, they were taking action without first 
inquiring whether the persons accused were the authors of the 
articles in question, and if so, whether the principles applied to 
them. Though he was far, he added, from approving of the fury 
of Marat, he could not help feeling that his case had done good 
service in repressing the enemies of the Revolution, and in any 
event so long as there existed no definite law against libels, nor 
special tribunals to deal with them, any accusation of the kind 
in question was a violation of the rights of man, of the rules of 
common sense and of the constitution, and was liable to lead 
to the most monstrous iniquity. ^ 

Meanwhile Brissot had gotten into trouble himself. He had 
published a letter in jvhich a chapter of women at Remiremont 
was accused of aristocratic tendencies, of hindering the pros- 
perity of the city, and of using its influence against the Revolu- 
tion. These allegations produced a tempest of excitement at 
Remiremont and stirred up a veritable wasps' nest for Brissot, 
Three citizens of Remiremont declared that they were in danger 
of losing their lives under suspicion of having written the letter, 
and begged him to reveal the name of the real author; and a 
deputation of the municipality and of the national guard made 
formal complaint against him before the National Assembly.^ 

1 Patriote Frangais, March 26, 1790. 2 jfj^d^ August 2, 1790. 

' Proces verbal de V AssemhUe nationale, August 5, 1790. See also Lacroix, 
Ades de la Commune, vii, 268, note. 



140 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

M. Bexon, a Paris lawyer, took up this cause, haled Brissot be- 
fore the police, and had the number of the Patriote Frangais in 
question placarded as a libel. In reply, Brissot declared that 
the matter was outside of the jurisdiction of the police; that 
M. Bexon was not qualified to plead; that the placard against 
the letter was itself a libel but that the letter was not libelous. 
Libel, he declared, must involve a false accusation of an overt 
act of which the law could take cognizance; to accuse a person 
of pride, or lack of patriotism, or other fault of character not 
within the purview of the law, could not possibly be construed 
as libel. ^ 

Meanwhile no definite law against libels was enacted by the 
Assembly, but with the growing disturbances of the summer of 
1791, the matter again came to the front. Brissot was more and 
more inclined to believe in complete liberty. He published 
extracts from Lanthenas's work on the subject, quoted Petion's 
speeches, and declared that much as he abhorred any incitation 
to murder or assassination, he did not believe it possible to 
frame a law which would effectively prosecute libels and at the 
same time not serve as a pretext for injustice. It was equally 
impossible, he added, to frame one which could not be easily 
evaded, and of which the benefit to the persons injured would 
not be overbalanced by injury to the public welfare. In any 
case, the law should take cognizance only of the calumnies 
directed against citizens as private individuals.^ The law of 
August 22, as passed, therefore seemed to him dangerous, and 
he warmly commended Robespierre's objections to it. In pro- 
viding for action against those who purposely provoked dis- 
obedience to the laws and the degradation of constituted 
authorities there was danger, he asserted, of checking free dis- 
cussion of public affairs, and especially legitimate criticism 
directed against public men.^ His attack was met by the sup- 
porters of the law with the assurance that by constituted 
authorities it was not intended to include the men who exer- 

^ Precis pour M. Bexon. * Patriote Frangais, August 18, 1791, 

» Ibid., August 23, 1791. 



A JOURNALIST 141 

cised the authority, and that freedom was further guaranteed 
by the provision that accusation against the press must be 
tried by a jury.^ As the Revolution progressed, however, hbel 
came to be apphed with great elasticity, both to opposition to 
persons in power and to the policy they represented. As early 
as January, 1792, Bertrand de Moleville, the minister of marine, 
attempted to get a decree of the council against Brissot for 
"atrocious and calumnious imputations" against Louis XVI, 
but it was too late, the royalist and the moderate party had lost 
their power and the attempt failed.^ After the 10th of August 
there was no longer freedom of speech for the royalist journals, 
and when the Girondins in turn began to lose influence, their 
jom-nals were likewise denounced as libelous, and on March 10, 
1793, on the pretext that a member of the Convention should 
not at the same time conduct a journal, Brissot was obliged 
to give up the editorship of the Patriote Frangais.^ 

The work of constitution-making and of passing fundamental 
laws on the judicial organization and on freedom of speech was 
not the only task of the National Assembly. Owing to its dis- 
trust of the king and his ministers, it gradually assumed a large 
share of the administration of the government. With every 
step in this direction Brissot was delighted. The sovereignty 
of the people might not be complete in that they did not choose 
the executive, but he would have it as complete as possible in 
controlling the actions of the executive. Holding such views, 
he naturally resented the assertion of the Moniteur that the 
ministers had the right to order the coining of money without 
consulting the Assembly; declared that the ministers must be 
held accountable for their conduct; * that the Assembly was too 
ready to leave in office men attached to the old regime; ^ and 
that in the conduct of foreign affairs they must be particularly 

^ Patriate Frangais, August 24, 1791. For the danger of resisting freedom 
of speech in making laws against the refractory priests, see p. 146. 
^ Bertrand de Moleville, Ilistoire de la Revolution de France, vii, 54. 
2 Moniteur, March 11, 1793. See also p. 329. 

* Patriote Frangais, October 21, 22, 1790. 

* Ibid., November 4, 1790. 



142 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

careful to choose men whom they could rely on as attached to 
the principles of the Revolution. 

As regards foreign affairs the Assembly was only too ready 
to take the control into its own hands and to adopt most radical 
measures. Here again, as on the constitution, Brissot was 
diametrically opposed to Mirabeau, and again he used the influ- 
ence of his paper to press what he considered the example of 
the United States and to uphold the power of the people as 
against that of the king. Mirabeau, as chairman of the diplo- 
matic committee of the National Assembly, held a position of 
influence which gave him great authority in foreign affairs. 
With all the power of tongue and pen at his command he tried 
to prevent the headstrong policy of the Assembly from ending 
in war. In the case of Avignon there was special need of his 
restraining hand, for France regarded with covetous eyes this 
ancient possession of the Papacy. In Avignon itself a French 
party had been created which demanded annexation to France, 
and this policy was powerfully supported by a large number of 
deputies in the Assembly. Mirabeau had succeeded in deferring 
the decision for a time, but upon the outbreak of a revolution 
in Avignon the Assembly dispatched troops there, and the 
radical party made this circumstance an added argument for 
annexation. This policy Brissot ardently supported. When the 
request for annexation was referred to the king he was very anx- 
ious lest the king might refuse his consent, and found in the 
danger of this situation an argument against giving to the ex- 
ecutive power the sole initiative in foreign affairs. That Avig- 
non belonged to the Pope, and that its annexation would in- 
volve a flagrant breach of international law, counted for little 
in his estimation. To await the consent of the Pope he consid- 
ered a recognition of diplomatic usage which the United States 
never would have sanctioned, and following what he supposed 
to be the example of the United States, he declared that diplo- 
macy must be disregarded. Mirabeau's statement, that even if 
Avignon were free to give herself, France had no right to accept 
the offer, he denounced as involving both a violation of the 



A JOURNALIST 143 

natural rights of man and a recognition of the power of the old 
diplomacy.^ 

Another important international question was the affair of 
Nootka Sound — and here Mirabeau and Brissot upheld the 
same policy, though for different reasons. Spain had seized 
property claimed by England in Nootka Sound, off Vancouver 
Island, and, when England threatened war, Spain appealed to 
France for aid. She based her appeal on the Facte de Famille, 
the offensive and defensive alliance concluded between France 
and Spain in 1761. In answer, the Assembly, led by Mirabeau, 
while not refusing Spain's appeal for assistance, practically 
nullified that assistance by taking steps to dissolve the Fade de 
Famille on the ground that its further continuance would be 
inexpedient and dangerous for France. The Assembly proposed 
instead to substitute for it an ordinary treaty of alliance. With 
this action Brissot was fully in sympathy, not on the ground of 
expediency, but because the family compact was a reminiscence 
of the old regime and as such should be destroyed.^ "The 
court of Spain does not know," he wrote, "that since the revo- 
lution a king of the French is not under obligation to execute 
the treaties of the king of France; that kings in a free govern- 
ment have no family; that France hereafter will have com- 
pacts only with the great family of the human race." ^ 

In this case Brissot and Mirabeau agreed, but agreement 
between them was the exception. As in the formation of the 
constitution, Mirabeau's object was to produce a constitution 
which should be practicable, so in the management of foreign 
and financial affairs he was guided by expediency. Brissot, on 
the other hand, was predominantly influenced by theory and 
considerations of abstract right, and failed both to appreciate 

' Patriate Frangais, November 18, 1790, where he supported Petion in his 
contention that Avignon had the right to unite herself to France. See also 
Patriate Franqais of November 22, 1790. 

2 Ihid., June 21, 1790. See also Manning, The Nootka Sound Contro- 
versy, in the Annual Report of the American Historical Association, 1904, 
pp. 424, 428. 

' Patriate Frangaise, May 12, 1790. 



144 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Mirabeau's regard for the practical necessities of the moment 
and to recognize the real greatness of the man. Mirabeau's 
death therefore did not seem to him an unmitigated calamity. 
Mirabeau, he wrote, hated despotism more than he loved lib- 
erty. He did not love the people, he never really knew the 
people, he only made use of the name of the people, in order to 
secure his own purpose, which was to oust the ministers and 
to slip into their place. His death was thus a good thing for 
liberty.^ 

Besides foreign affairs, the Assembly assumed control of the 
Church. On this subject Brissot was, in the main, in harmony 
with the majority and represented moreover the radical opin- 
ions which might be expected from a deist. The first step of the 
Assembly with regard to the Church was taken on the 4th of 
August, when in its orgy of decrees it declared the tithes paid 
to the Church abolished without compensation. This case was 
an exception to Brissot's general agreement with the policy of 
the Assembly on ecclesiastical matters, and when Sieyes, who 
was the only member who apparently realized that the Assem- 
bly was merely making a present to the landholders, raised his 
voice against the measm-e, Brissot was the sole journalist who 
ventured to support him.^ With the pivotal policy of the As- 
sembly toward the Church, the assumption of the church lands, 
Brissot was in full sympathy. The Assembly was in a difficult 
position. It was warned not to imitate the monarchy in per- 
petual appeals to credit, and, at the same time, was urged to 
diminish the public debt. It was not possible to borrow or to 
increase the taxes.^ That the state needed the wealth of the 

^ This expression of opinion was most pleasing to Madame Roland. In a 
letter to Ban gal she wrote: " Tous les journalists se sont emparSs de sa mort 
comme d'un morceau precieux, riche et pathStique dont chacun tire parti suivant 
ses talents. Je ne connais que Brissot qui ait eu la sagesse d'eviter Vidoldtrie, avec 
le prudence de ne pas offenser Vopinion." Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 257. 

2 " Elles [les dimes] sont supprimSes sans indemnity chez I'ecclSsiastique ; un 
seul membre s'est levS contre la redaction de ce dernier article seutement, et il 
desoit en lui-meme : lis veulent etrc lihres. Us ne savent pas etre justes." Par 
triote Frangais, August 13, 1789. 

' Gomel, Histoire financihe, i, Introduction, xxiv. 



A JOURNALIST 145 

Church was thus evident; that she had a right to take it was 
more doubtful. But to Brissot the right was as obvious as the 
need. The clergy, he declared, quoting the speech of M. Chasse, 
were not proprietors, only depositaries; they could with perfect 
propriety be paid in some other way than by giving them the 
use of the property.^ Furthermore, the church property had 
been given to the clergy only on condition that they were useful 
to society; if they ceased to perform useful functions they could 
be despoiled of it.^ These arguments, reinforced by the very 
practical one of financial necessity, prevailed, and the property 
was taken, — "assumed" said the majority of the Assembly, 
"confiscated" said the Church. 

The Assembly had thus torn down. It had now to build up, 
and in this process it had to deal with questions of religion and 
religious tolerance, as well as with ecclesiastical organization. 
A question of this kind first came up in connection with the 
declaration of rights'. Should the name of God be inserted and 
God be declared the first cause of all those rights .f^ Contrary to 
what proved to be the opinion of the majority, Brissot argued 
against it. " God is indeed the first cause of these rights, as He 
is of everything," he wrote; "but the true first cause of the 
rights of man is man's existence. He ought to be free because 
he exists," * 

A more serious matter from the practical point of view was 
that brought up by Dom Gerle's motion that the Catholic, 
Apostolic, and Roman religion should always be that of the 
nation. This was clearly a violation of tolerance and, after a 
stormy debate, was rejected as such. According to Brissot even 
to deliberate on such a proposition was a crime. " To say that 
one believes in the Catholic religion is to make a profession of 
faith; but to authorize only that religion, is to interfere with 
other religions, to persecute them; it is to force people to be- 
lieve and to practice Catholicism alone; and such intolerance 
is a crime against Christ himself, who allowed himself to be 

1 Patriate Frangais, October 24, 1789. 

2 Ibid., September 11, 1789. ^ md,, August 20, 1789. 



146 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

crucified and who crucified no one." ^ And consistently with 
this spirit of tolerance he argued that civil rights be given to 
Protestants, Jews, and actors. But though strongly against 
the establishment of the Catholic religion to the exclusion of all 
others, he was heartily in favor of the Catholic Church as the 
State Church, and supported the radical policy involved in the 
election of the bishops and priests by the people, the regulation 
of the salaries of the clergy by the government, and the demand 
from every priest of an oath to support the civil constitution 
of the clergy. 2 The priest was a state functionary, he declared, 
and quoted Voltaire to the effect that priests in the state were 
very much like tutors in the home, agencies for teaching, 
preaching, and furnishing a good example.^ He even went so far 
as to say that there was reason in the idea of the Quakers in 
abolishing the priesthood altogether. At the same time, he 
admitted that ideal as that might be, France was not yet ready 
for such a step. He added, however, that the example of the 
Quakers should be imitated to the extent of proscribing all use- 
less priests, in which number he included all archbishops and 
bishops. He also advocated the radical policy of the marriage 
of the clergy, but acknowledged that this idea must be pre- 
sented with caution, as the people were not yet educated up 
to it.^ At all events he would do away with monastic vows, 
and was therefore greatly pleased at the decree suppressing 
religious orders.^ 

Above all, he preached tolerance, and like most of his con- 
temporaries did not seem to realize that in upholding the oath 
of obedience to the new constitution which it was proposed to 
require of the clergy, he himself might be guilty of rank intoler- 
ance. To take this oath involving adhesion to the principle of 
election of priests without any confirmation by the Pope, was 
to many churchmen a violation of their conscientious scruples. 
The Pope certainly regarded it as such, for he threatened with 

* Patriate Frangais, April 13, 1790. 

2 Ibid., August 12, 13, 1789; June 1, 1790. ^ Ibid., May 30, 1790. 

* Ibid., June 1, 1790; July 27, September 4, 1792. « Ibid., April 7, 1792. 



A JOURNALIST 147 

excommunication all ecclesiastics who took the oath. The 
authority of the Pope Brissot had already assailed in UAu- 
torite legislative de Rome aneantie, published a few years be- 
fore.^ He now seized the occasion to bring out a new edition, 
entitled Rome jugee et Vautorite legislative du pape aneantie, with 
a new preface in which he stated that he proposed "to prove 
that the popes are only usurpers, total strangers to French 
Christians, and that for free Frenchmen a pope who excommu- 
nicated them was only an enemy who ought to be punished if he 
had any power, but that as he was a mere phantom, he need 
only be scorned. The timid fear that interdict; rogues exagger- 
ate the danger. The former must be enlightened, the latter un- 
masked." That this whole attitude on the part of the Pope and 
the clergy might be a matter of conscience Brissot refused to 
consider, and ridiculed as absurd the suggestion of Abbe Maury 
that the civil constitution of the clergy ought to have the sanc- 
tion of a national council or of the Pope, and that the govern- 
ment "ought not to violate timorous consciences." ^ However 
much matters of religion seemed to the clergy to be involved, 
to the majority of the Assembly it was a matter of political im- 
port only. Their attitude toward the Church had been directed 
in the first place, not by any burning zeal for religion, but by 
the need of money, and the land of the Chiu'ch had been taken 
not with the idea of making the Church less secular, but as a 
financial resource in dire distress. To oppose the new organiza- 
tion which had been devised in consequence seemed therefore 
to Brissot, as to many other revolutionists, merely perverse 
objection to the principles of the Revolution. 

On the financial, as well as on the ecclesiastical policy of the 
Assembly, Brissot was on the radical side. In his early writings 
he had frequently discussed financial questions, and he now had 
a chance to make his influence felt directly through his journal. 
He accordingly devoted much space to the subject. He wished 

1 See p. 36. 

2 Patriate Franqais, November 29, 1790. See also issues of January 8, 19, 
24, and February 18, 1791. 



148 BEISSOT DE WARVILLE 

to get rid as fast and as far as possible of the influence of the 
old regime, prevent any introduction of its methods into the 
new regime, reduce the power of the king and ministers in finan- 
cial matters to its lowest terms, substitute for it the authority 
of the Assembly, instead of temporary expedients for raising 
money, adopt the most thoroughgoing measures, and finally 
introduce a system of taxation which would be both just and 
democratic. One of the first abuses of the old regime to which 
the Assembly turned its attention was that of pensions. To 
Brissot they seemed an unmitigated evil, and when it was sug- 
gested that a pension was an acquired property, and that to 
abolish the pension without restriction might be a violation 
of the declaration of rights, he expressed great astonishment. 
There was practical agreement, however, that the pension list 
should be revised, but when it was proposed that the revision 
should be made by the executive power Brissot again uttered 
protest. "It would be to put in charge of curing the evil," he 
objected, "the very persons who were profiting by it." ^ This 
objection seems to have had some influence, for when the law 
against pensions was brought forward it provided that the revi- 
sion should be made not by the king, but by a committee of the 
Assembly. With this decision Brissot was greatly pleased, as 
also with the further clause that no pension or salary should be 
paid to Frenchmen who had left the realm without the authori- 
zation of the government.' 

Of the general financial policy of the ministry as represented 
by Necker, he was a constant and severe critic. In his Observa- 
tions d'un repuhlicain he had declared that Necker was not a 
defender of the people but an upholder of despotism, but in the 
Plan de conduite he had in a measure retracted his earlier state- 
ments and appealed to the public to rally to Necker's support. 
He now apparently went back to his former opinion, and till 
the retirement of Necker in September, 1790, there were few 
numbers of the Pairiote Frangais in which he did not assail him 

^ Patriate Frangais, January 6, 1790. * Ibid. 

' Gomel, II, 16. 



A JOURNALIST 149 

for some sin, either of omission or commission. He criticized 
him for his unwilUngness to produce the livre rouge, ^ "that 
infernal cavern," ^ to use Brissot's own term; maintained that 
in face of the decree of the Assembly, the expenses must be 
reduced sixty millions (Necker had declared it possible to re- 
duce them only thirty millions) ; found fault with him for en- 
couraging the lottery,' and objected strenuously to his plans 
for transforming the caisse d'escompte into a national bank.* 
To this institution Brissot was particularly opposed. The As- 
sembly must exercise greater control over it, he argued both 
in his speech before the municipal council and in his journal; on 
the other hand it must not accord it greater privileges. Brissot 
was by no means alone in his hostility, and the general opposi- 
tion resulted in the defeat of Necker 's plan, and in demands on 
the caisse d'escompte on the part of the Assembly which weak- 
ened what credit it still had.^ In taking this step the Assembly 
weakened a source of its own support, and as the patriotic con- 
tribution of one fourth of the revenue, from which much had 
been expected, had not been productive,^ the government was 
under more urgent necessity than ever for providing financial 
resource. That resource, according to Brissot, and, as it proved, 
according to the majority of the Assembly, was to be found in 
assignats issued on the church lands. In the measures for the 
sale of these lands Brissot seems to have been more prudent 
than the majority 'of his fellow politicians and journalists, 
and even at the risk of offending his constituency urged that 

^ The book of secret expenses of the royal government under Louis XV and 
Louis XVI. Patriote Frangais, April 22, 23; May 2, 1790. 

2 Ibid.. April 8, 1790. 

' "Comment peut-il croire a ^existence des loteries sous le regne de Vordre 
public ? une loterie nest-elle pas le jeu le plus immorcd, le plus coniradictoire avec 
V esprit et les moeurs d' une constitution libre et d'un peuple quon veut regenerer? 
Le profit de I'Stat sur les loteries n'est-il pas un vol infame, fait a la partie la plus 
miserable du peuple qu'on abuse ? La misere a du faire la gabelle: la morale doit 
faire abolir la loterie." Patriote Frangais, June 5, 1790. 

^ See p. 103. 

^ Patriote Frangais, September 23, October 3, December 19, 1789; also 
Gomel, I, 516. 

6 Ibid., March 14, 1790. 



150 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the municipalities renounce a share of the rather large part of 
the proceeds which had been offered them.^ 

He not only supported the assumption and sale of church 
lands by the state, as a financial measure, but was also enthusi- 
astic over the opportunity it offered to him personally to fur- 
ther the interests of an association of which he was one of the 
promoters and probably the originator. The plans for this 
association were drawn up in Brissot's own hand and appar- 
ently just after the decree of November 18, 1789, which placed 
on sale the property of the Church. ^ The plan, which showed 
the influence both of Rousseau and of Brissot's American expe- 
rience, provided for an association founded on ideas of democra- 
tic equality, something after the style of the Moravian Breth- 
ren.^ It was to be called the Societe agricole ou d'amis and was to 
have for its object the regeneration of society by means of rural 
education. It was to purchase, in the first place, property of 
sufficient size to provide for about twenty families, and in a 
locality where fm-ther purchases could be made as the society 
grew. In order to fulfill its educational purpose its members 
were to engage in teaching a system of the purest morality, the 
simplest religious opinions, and manual labor, and by a method 
entirely different from that which was usually followed. WTien 
the society was well established it was to undertake such manu- 
factures as could be easily carried on in the country. It was also 
to have a printing establishment, in the first place for its own 
use and in the second place for extending its teachings through- 
out France. There was to be provided further a common li- 
brary and a common meeting place, though each family was to 
have its own house, which must be simple and without unneces- 
sary luxury or ornamentation. New members were to be ad- 
mitted only after having passed through a novitiate and would 
be required to subscribe in advance to the form of government 

1 See p. 103. 

2 Lettres de Madame Roland, ri, 77. See also Perroud, Un Projet de Brissot 
pour une Association agricole, in La Revolution franqaise, March, 1902; xui, 
260-65. 

3 See p. 89. 



A JOURNALIST 151 

established. Active members would be expected to subscribe 
from twelve to fifteen thousand francs, though provision was 
made for loaning money to those who had little or nothing, and 
for receiving special gifts from those who were willing to give 
more than the required amount. 

The ideas set forth in this scheme Brissot communicated to 
Lanthenas, who in turn explained them to the Rolands, and 
they in turn together with Champagneux,^ Blot, and Ban gal des 
Issarts,^ joined in planning the association.^ Brissot meanwhile 
approached his friend Robert Pigott, the English Quaker, from 
whom he hoped financial backing for the enterprise. Of all his 
friends Brissot found Lanthenas his most active supporter, and 
during the fall of 1790 they had much correspondence as to 
ways and means. ^ It was proposed at first to buy property in 
the vicinity of Lyons, but Brissot found the neighborhood was 
too aristocratic and recommended purchase elsewhere. But 
apparently before any purchase could be made the ardor of his 
friends began to cool. Pigott, on whom he had staked his hopes, 
withdrew; Ban gal des Issarts departed for England, not im- 
probably with the motive of disengaging himself from what he 
had evidently come to regard as an impracticable scheme; and 
even the enthusiastic Lanthenas ventured to express doubt 
whether Brissot had adequately gauged the diflSculties of the 
enterprise.^ Thus another of Brissot's schemes for brotherhood 
and social regeneratioti came to an end, this time before it was 
even inaugurated. 

Meanwhile, Brissot continued to fill the columns of the 
Patriote Frangais with arguments in favor of the assignats. 
The assignats were very different, he declared, from the paper 
of the caisse d'escompte. There would be much more confidence 
in this kind of paper, bearing interest, based on the goods of 
the clergy and other property of the state, limited in purpose 

* L. A. Champagneux, the friend of the Rolands and editor of Madame 
Roland's works. 

^ Correspondance, 252-53. 

^ Lettres de Madame Roland, n, 743; Appendix O. 

* Correspondance, 255. ^ Lettres de Madame Roland, n, 179. 



152 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

and in quantity, and payable at a fixed time, than there 
would be if it were connected with the operations of a dis- 
credited caisse, whose condition was imknown and whose de- 
crees of suspension of payment proved its embarrassment.^ 
The proposed issue of four hundred millions he declared too 
small, and lu-ged that six hundred millions was not too much. 
In spite of some protests, these demands prevailed and the 
assignats were voted, though the amount was at first limited to 
four hundred millions. But as it did not bring the money ex- 
pected, another issue was soon called for. This issue also Bris- 
sot advocated as a necessary expedient and resented any sug- 
gestion of evil consequences. He reported with satisfaction 
that the chambers of commerce of Nantes and of Bordeaux 
had unanimously demanded it, and that similar bodies in other 
parts of France were going to take like action; attacked collec- 
tively and by name opponents of the measure, including Necker, 
Talleyrand, and Bergasse; ^ retorted to the objection that the 
assignats could not be used in foreign commerce, that no one 
claimed they could, but that they would greatly facilitate it by 
taking the place of coin which would be used for that purpose. 
And when some one turning to Brissot's favorite example ven- 
tured to suggest the warning that might be drawn from the 
experience with paper money in America, he declared that the 
cases were not at all parallel. The American money had no 
foundation; was issued in the midst of war, and was thirty or 
forty times greater than the coin in circulation; as for the as- 
sertion that the effect of paper money in America had been 
to raise the price of provisions, he replied that that rise was 
not the effect of paper, but of doubled consumption and less- 
ened production. "How can any one have the bad faith," he 
asked, "to compare the certificates of America, founded upon 
unsalable land lacking purchasers and cultivation, with assig- 
nats based on lands of great value for which there is a ready 

^ Patriate Frangais, December 18, 1789, and Discours sur la rareU du nume- 
raire. 

2 Patriate Franqaia, March 12, May 17, June 23, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 153 

sale? " ^ And, when coming nearer home, the example of Law's 
paper money was cited, he again replied that the cases were not 
parallel, and forgetting as he did on other occasions that a 
change in the form of government did not change the laws, 
either of political economy or human nature, added that the 
paper of Law was manufactured by despotism, and was there- 
fore a very different thing from the assignats issued by a free 
nation. 2 In spite of the protests from Talleyrand and a few 
others who foresaw the destruction to which such opening of 
the dikes would lead, these and like arguments prevailed and a 
new issue of assignats was voted. 

With the issue of the assignats the control of the finances 
passed more and more from the ministry to the Assembly. Of 
this new administration Brissot was as critical as he had been of 
the old. On January 21 he published an open letter to Camus,^ 
in which he censured him for reporting in favor of the claim of 
the Duke of Orleans to a dot promised by Louis XV to the 
daughter of the regent, a part of which had not been paid. It 
would be like giving to a thief the little that remained in your 
purse after he had robbed you, and would hark back to the 
methods of the old regime. There was already too much, he 
added, of that spirit in the operation of the treasury.* 

It was now proposed to put the administration of the treas- 
ury into the hands of a committee chosen from the Assembly. 
When a like proposition had been made by Necker a year be- 
fore, Brissot had vigorously opposed it on the ground that it 
would mean the confounding of two distinct powers.^ Now, con- 
ditions having changed, he was in favor of it, and in the face of 
his former argument declared that to give the choice of the 

» Patriote Franqais, April 10, September 26, 1790. ^ /j^^^.^ April 16, 1790. 

' Armand Gaston Camus (born 1740, died 1804) was an enthusiastic sup- 
porter of the Revolution and a deputy of Paris to the States-General. He took a 
prominent part in the debates on financial questions and was one of the chief 
advocates of the civil constitution of the clergy. He was also a member of the 
Convention, and of the committee of public safety, and under the Directory 
was ofiEered the place of minister of finance. 

* Lettre a M. Camus, January 21, 1791. 

s Patriote Franqais, March 17, 1790. 



154 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

administrators to the legislative body instead of to the king 
would not make the legislative body in any sense an executive 
body.^ It was decreed, however, that the choice should be made 
by the king. With the personnel of the committee, as well as 
with the manner of choice, Brissot was ill satisfied, because it 
included, he was convinced, either men who were opposed to 
the assignats or who knew little about finance. On the latter 
ground he ventured to criticize even Condorcet, whom in most 
respects he greatly admired, and published a letter to him in 
the Patriote Frangais in which he calmly told him of his short- 
comings for the position.^ Lavoisier, another member of the 
committee chosen by the king, he criticized because of his offer 
to serve without pay. The offer was actuated by the best mo- 
tives, he admitted, but its effect would be to humiliate those 
who had to depend on their pay for their livelihood. Moreover 
it was not seemly under a free government. 

In all economic matters Brissot was also greatly interested. 
If in things political, equality was his watchword, here it was 
liberty, and to questions where liberty was in any way involved 
he gave especial attention, such as the price of grain, its free 
circulation, the provisioning of Paris,^ the free cultivation of 
tobacco, its free importation or at least low duties on it,* and 
the extension of foreign trade, especially with America.^ 

But the subject to which above all others he devoted the 
columns of the Patriote Frangais was the cause of the negro. 
He stood for his liberation from slavery, and for the extension 
of a greater measure of equality to the mulattoes. To this end 
he supported the Amis des Noirs. Indeed, as has been pointed 
out, he made his paper the organ of that society, upheld its 
policy, and as colonial problems occupied more and more atten- 
tion in the Assembly, devoted an increasing amount of space to 
their discussion. In fact, most of the controversies in which 

1 Patriate Frangais, March 10, 1791. 2 ifyij_^ AprU 10, 1791. 

3 Ibid., July 30, August 7, 10, 18, 27, September 12, 1789. 
* Ibid., November 17, 1790; January 30, 1791. 
» Ibid., February 14, 15, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 155 

the Patriote Frangais became involved either with individuals 
or with other journals grew out of his championship of the 
negro, and of the Amis des Noirs. A discussion of Brissot's 
attitude on this subject belongs, however, rather with the his- 
tory of that society than with his influence as a journalist. 



CHAPTER VII 

brissot's career during the constituent assembly 
as a journalist — le patriote fran9ais 

Past U 

His Attitude toward Popular Movements and Public Opinion 

The work of the Assembly, both in the formation of the 
constitution and in the administration of the government, was 
modified and profoundly influenced from time to time by popu- 
lar movements. Of the importance of such movements and 
of their influence on the Assembly Brissot was keenly aware. 
What was being done and said outside of the Assembly was, he 
realized, of the greatest moment, and he gave much space in 
the Patriate Frangais to its discussion. At first the Assembly had 
paid little attention to external events and had gone calmly on 
debating a declaration of rights, syllable by syllable, till it was 
brought down from the clouds by Salomon's report. The result 
was the sudden and enthusiastic vote against feudal privi- 
lege of every description known as the "orgy" of the 4th of 
August. Although Brissot spoke with approval of the "gener- 
ous enthusiasm " of the privileged classes,^ he was not so enthu- 
siastic over this particular onslaught on depotism as might have 
been expected; but his objection was not to the decrees them- 
selves, but to the headlong haste with which they were passed, 
and may perhaps have been colored by his disappointment 
that the articles voted did not include liberty of the press. ^ 
In his opinion, there was crying need of another constructive 
measure which ought to be taken without waiting till the 
constitution was finished, — namely, the establishment of a 
provisional national tribunal. "It is not with promises," he 
warned the Assembly, "that the fury of the people can be 
1 Patriote Frangais, August 6, 1789. * Ibid., August 7, 1789. 



A JOURNALIST 157 

stopped. They clamor for deeds, they want to be satisfied im- 
mediately. Perhaps if such a tribunal is not established more 
blood will be shed. One must be created which, in the midst 
of chaos and anarchy, will execute prompt justice upon a few 
agents of despotism, and thus force the others to abandon their 
posts." ^ 

As Brissot predicted, disorder continued and culminated in 
Paris on the 5th and 6th of October, when a mob rushed out to 
Versailles, insulted the dignity of the Assembly, broke into the 
palace, murdered members of the king's guard, and forced the 
king and queen to remove their abode to Paris. Lafayette, who 
as the commander of the national guard was responsible for 
order, arrived late on the scene and eventually quelled the dis- 
turbance, but it was felt by many people that if he had acted 
with promptness and vigor the outbreak might have been 
prevented altogether. In judging of this unfortunate affair 
Brissot did not take a very decided or radical stand. While de- 
ploring the acts of violence and the shedding of blood, he was 
not one of those who held Lafayette responsible, but on the 
contrary commended his "prudence and courage." As a mem- 
ber of the Comiie des Recherches of the Commune he had to take 
action against the alleged instigators of violence, but at the 
same time he joined his fellow members of the committee in a 
declaration that in taking such action they were only fulfilling 
their duty and that they had nothing to do with ulterior 
causes — which was equivalent to saying that they were in 
sympathy with the movement as a whole.^ Moreover, this 
censure was rather offset by the fact that when Brissot wished 
to show that the people were really not "ferocious" he made 
the singular choice of the events of October 5 and 6 as an 
example with which to prove his point, and complacently re- 
marked that the mob did not do all the harm it might have 

^ According to Jaures (Hisloire socialiste, i, 288) Brissot's criticism was from 
the point of view of a doctrinaire and a pedant who wanted long discussion of 
theories and not immediate action. 

* Lacroix, Les Actes de la Commune, v, 134. 



158 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

done. With the incidental result, the transfer to Paris of the 
National Assembly, he was greatly pleased. In his Plan de 
conduite he had pressed upon the States-General the advisabil- 
ity of such a step, and now that it was taken he was in the fore- 
front in presenting congratulations and promises of support 
on the part of the municipality of Paris. ^ 

In the affair of Nancy, when many of his fellow citizens 
hesitated, he was more decided and was one of those who ex- 
pressed open sympathy with the mutinous soldiers. The revolt 
which culminated at Nancy grew out of the suspicion with 
which the army was regarded. A large part of the Assembly 
doubted its adherence to the Revolution and thought of it as a 
possible means by which the king might reestablish his author- 
ity. Influenced by their fear of its power and by their own 
ideas of fraternity and equality, they had passed various de- 
crees which were utterly destructive of discipline. The result 
was disorganization everywhere, culminating on August 31, 
1790, in an open mutiny at Nancy which was suppressed by the 
Marquis de Bouille. The Assembly was in an embarrassing 
position : it did not wish to uphold what might be considered 
a despotic exercise of power; at the same time it could not 
encourage mutiny, even though that mutiny were the result of 
its own action. The outcome was that the majority officially 
approved of Bouille's action; but a considerable minority, 
joined by many outside of the Assembly, did not hesitate to 
declare that the mutinous soldiers had right on their side and 
that Bouille had been guilty of an act of tyranny. Believing 
that soldiers were justified in protesting against orders of which 
they did not approve, ^ even this illustration of the result 
of such doctrine did not open Brissot's eyes nor prevent 
him from criticizing M. Bouille severely. "The triumph of 
M. Bouille," he wrote, "the death of four hundred citizens, 
has caused general indignation." The soldiers were rebels, he 
admitted, but those rebels were their brothers, and the blood of 
their brothers should be shed sparingly. Bouille ought to have 
1 See p. 91. 2 Patriote FrauQais, April 26, 1791. 



A JOURNALIST 159 

reasoned with them as a father, and, hke those entrusted with 
putting down Shays' Rebelhon in Massachusetts, have avoided 
the shedding of blood till the last extremity.^ A little later 
he expressed himself even more emphatically, laying blame 
on the municipality of Nancy, the department, M. Bouille, 
and the Swiss officers; in short, on every one but the soldiers. 
"Should the soldiers be blamed?" he demanded. "Doubtless 
they did make mistakes, but their excuse is in the revolution, 
their own patriotism, the aristocracy of their officers and the 
loyalty with which they are inspired." ^ For the time being 
Brissot was in advance of public opinion in his condemnation of 
Bouille and represented only the minority, but that minority 
was strong enough to stop the persecution of Bouille's French 
prisoners,^ and eventually Brissot's point of view prevailed, and 
Bouille, instead of being honored as a military hero, came to be 
popularly regarded as a cruel tyrant of the old regime. 

Brissot's decidedly unmilitary idea of discipline was again 
evident in the matter of the disobedience of the soldiers to 
Lafayette when they prevented the king from going to Saint- 
Cloud, on April 18, 1791. Passive obedience, he admitted, 
might be necessary for discipline, but it was one thing to obey 
blindly orders concerning discipline and tactics, and quite 
another thing to obey commands which seemed to be unjust, 
contrary to law and liberty.^ 

Brissot was indeed a thorough democrat in his sympathy 
with the people. He naturally, therefore, upheld the right of 
petition and resented any limitations upon it. He went fur- 
ther, and upheld popular movements not only in the spe- 
cific cases referred to, but in general. " The instinct of the people 
is worth more than all your dialectics, " he cried; "it has saved 
you ten times over and it will continue to save you." Popular 
movements were to be expected and desired among a people 

^ Patriote Franqais, September 3, 4, 1790. ^ lUd., December 9, 1790. 
' The Swiss soldiers, however, over whom the jurisdiction of the French law 
did not extend were tried by court-martial created by their own officers. 
* Patriote Franqais, April 26, 1791. 



160 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

whose constitution was not yet finished, as a means of fright- 
ening conspirators and false patriots, and especially among a 
people, a large part of whom were excluded from a share in 
making the laws. To require a people to submit without ques- 
tion to all the laws, it would be necessary that all people should 
have a share through their representatives in making the laws. 
But owing to the distinction between active and passive citizens 
half of France was not represented, was in a state of subjection. 
When that haK once realized the uselessness of petitions as a 
means of securing redress, insurrection would be its natural 
weapon.^ 

But that the people might not become the prey of unscrupu- 
lous agitators they needed to be instructed. He therefore wel- 
comed the growth of popular societies. Such societies, the 
distinctive feature of which was that, unlike the Jacobin Club, 
they were open to passive as well as to active citizens and to 
women as well as to men, began to come into existence in the 
autumn of 1790, and by the spring of 1791 they were numerous 
and flourishing. With this movement Brissot was delighted 
and did all in his power to encourage and foster it; he published 
articles by Lanthenas on the subject, declared that such organ- 
izations were the secret of peace and social order, and urged 
their establishment everywhere. ^ 

Of one of the societies — that at Lons-le-Saunier — he be- 
came the special champion. Another society of aristocratic 
character had been formed at the same place, and both claimed 
affiliation with the Jacobins at Paris, which, under the leader- 
ship of Theodore Lameth, decided in favor of the latter. 
Whereupon Brissot took up the cudgels in behalf of the demo- 
cratic society, opened the columns of his newspaper to their 
complaints, and attacked Lameth in unsparing terms. The 
cause of the democratic society, he declared, was the cause of 

1 Patriate Frangais, May 12, 1791. See also Aulard, La Formation du parti 
rSpublicain, in La Revolution frangaise, xxxv, 318-22. 

2 Patriate Frangais, February 14, 1791. Of the societies for women he 
apparently did not approve unreservedly. 



A JOURNALIST 161 

patriotism and of justice. Whoever was indifferent to the com- 
plaints of their brave brethren of Mont-Jura was unworthy of 
liberty; whoever would stifle these complaints was a traitor to 
patriotism.^ 

While defending popular societies in general, he became a 
member of one of the most prominent of such societies at 
Paris — the Cercle social. This society, a little group of munici- 
pal politicians gathered around Fauchet, was in part made up 
of the former representatives of the Commune. It was based 
on a kind of free-masonry, and was somewhat socialistic as well 
as democratic in character. With the idea of extending its 
activities it proceeded to develop an organization known as the 
Confederation des amis de la verite, whose purpose was to preach 
the rights of man as an end, and as a means to this end to fur- 
ther universal brotherhood.^ In spite of some practical work 
this confederation seems to have been too theoretical to have 
altogether satisfied Brissot with his never quenched desire for 
active propaganda; and with the aim, apparently, of educating 
public opinion more directly, he engaged in company with his 
friends, Lanthenas, Bangal, and the Rolands, in trying to form 
a federation of philosophers. Like his previous enterprises, this 
was not to be primarily a money -making scheme, and was there- 
fore to be carried on by such persons as would be content to get 
only a bare living out of it, and would concentrate all their 
energies on making it useful to humanity.^ As in the Associa- 
tion agricole, he hoped to get help from the English Quakers, 
and here again he found in Lanthenas his most active sup- 
porter.* Lanthenas, however, feared Brissot's over-zealous 
ardor, and apparently with good reason, for Brissot in his 

^ Patriote Frangais, February 25, March 13, 1791. 

* Lacroix, Les Actes de la Commune de Paris, vii, 416, 452, 607. 
^ Lettres de Madame Roland, n, 253-59; April, 1791. 

* At the time that this project was on foot, Madame Roland was cor- 
responding with Bangal as to the possibility of ;his acting as agent for the 
ConfedSration des amis de la vSriti at Paris, and forming a like society at Lon- 
don, but the plan seems to have fallen through. It is possible that Brissot's 
plan was connected with this. Lettres, ii, 248, 262. 



162 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

anxiety to get money kept running after Lafayette, and failed 
to see what to Lanthenas seemed self-evident, that Lafayette 
was playing with him, and that he was being blinded to Lafay- 
ette's real political sentiments.^ This accusation is naturally 
not susceptible of proof, but at all events Lafayette appar- 
ently gave him no money, and as very few other people seem 
to have either, the enterprise fell through. 

In connection with Brissot's democracy two interesting ques- 
tions arise: did it extend to women, and was it socialistic in 
character? ^ As to the first question, he certainly approved of 
the admission of women to the popular societies, showed his 
sympathy with a society of women known as the Amies de la 
vSrite, by sending them a letter of congratulation, and spoke 
with satisfaction of the women's clubs formed at Bordeaux, 
Allais, and Nantes.^ But it cannot truthfully be said that he 
was very enthusiastic on the subject. The place of woman, he 
declared apropos of Talleyrand's outline of a plan for national 
education, was in the home. She should, therefore, be given an 
education which would suit her for private, not for public life. 
His inmost feelings on the subject are best seen in his memoirs, 
where he declared that a woman devoted to politics seemed to 
him a monster, or at least a "'precieuse ridicule" of a new kind.* 

As to the socialistic character of Brissot's democracy, the 
answer is not so easy. No scheme for the suppression of private 
property or for its wholesale redistribution apparently ever 
crossed his mind, yet some of his ideas might be characterized 
as socialistic in the broader sense of the term, his advocacy, for 
instance, of the abolition of primogeniture. To permit this 
inequality in bequests of property, he wrote, was to accumulate 

1 "Lanthenas Scrivait dSja d, Banqal en avril, en lui exposant ses plans de pro- 
pagande {Bib. nat. 9534, fol. 200-01) : Brissot va ce matin, chez M. Lafayette 
pour eprouver ses intentions. II a qffert plusieurs fois l' argent pour quelque entre- 
prise qui tendit a garantir la Constitution centre les dangers qui de tous cotSs la 
menacent. Si nous pouvons le determiner pour ce projet des Sodetes populaires." 
Lettres de Madame Roland, u, 273, note. 

2 Lacroix, Les Actes de la Commune de Paris, vii, 622. 

* Ibid., and Patriate Franqais, April 1, 1791. * MSmoires, t, 272-73. 



A JOURNALIST 163 

property in the hands of a few privileged persons. The division 
of property, on the other hand, was the most fruitful source of 
public prosperity.^ Further, he was a constant champion of the 
poor. For example, in connection with the subject of finance, 
he argued for the small assignat, on the ground that it was 
needed by the poor workmen; ^ and on the subject of taxation 
he argued against the octroi because it weighed with especial 
heaviness on the poor.^ Nor did he hesitate to publish an ar- 
ticle Sur le peuple in which the vices of the rich and the virtues 
of the poor were frankly contrasted,^ and in the Patriote Fran- 
gais of July 18, 1791, he declared that the amoimt of money 
paid in taxes by the poor was not as small as it seemed; that, 
on the contrary, if the value of their work was considered, they 
really paid more than the rich. 

Though he preached no immediate change in fundamental 
social relations, he would do away at once with undemocratic 
social forms. It was not only an undemocratic reminiscence of 
past distinctions, he maintained, but quite useless as well to 
address your letters to your neighbor "Monsieur" or "Ma- 
dame" and to sign yourself "his most humble and obedient 
servant." It would even be better, provided one could change 
all his habits at once, to substitute for the formal second person 
of the plural the tu forms of the singular.^ People should cer- 
tainly drop the aristocratic de from their names, though in 
order to avoid confu'sion the patronymic would better be kept.® 
Not even the king should be excepted in this abandonment of 
aristocratic titles. The king was no longer the sovereign, he 
declared; he should therefore not be given the name,^ while to 
call him " Louis by the grace of God " was positively obnoxious, 
as absolutely out of harmony with the acknowledged fact that 

1 Patriote Franqais, March 14, 1791; also August 14, and December 6, 1790. 

2 Ibid., May 6, 1790. * Ibid., February 13, 1791. 

4 Ibid., February 5, 1791. ^ Ibid., June 23, 1791; also July 4, 1790. 

® Ibid., July 1, 1790. Note the way in which he followed his own advice. 
In the Patriote Frangais of October 7, 1790, he gives a list of the works of 
"J. P. Brissot," then below in smaller type is printed "ci-devant de Warville." 

^ Ibid., September 24, 1790. 



164 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Louis was king solely by the will of the people.^ Indeed, Brissot 
felt so strongly on the matter that when at the theater people 
shouted, " Vive le roi" he found his pleasure completely spoiled. 
One comparatively trivial evidence of aristocratic exclusiveness 
on the part of the king irritated him extremely, namely, that 
during the presence of the king at the Tuileries the garden was 
kept shut till one o'clock, and when it was open, workmen and 
people shabbily dressed, or carrying packages, were not allowed 
to enter. The garden, as well as the Champs filysees, he main- 
tained, should be freely open to the public irrespective of occu- 
pation or attire.^ 

Also in more serious matters Brissot wished to do away with 
the privileges accorded to the king and to reduce him to a plane 
of democratic equality with other citizens. He rejoiced, for 
example, when the right of pardon was taken from him,^ ob- 
jected to his control of so many domains * and so large a pension 
fund, his inviolability as a private citizen^ and his private 
guard. ^ In fact, in every possible way and in the strongest 
terms Brissot showed his desire to lessen the power of the king. 

But did he wish to do away with the king altogether? He 
was a thorough democrat, but was he also a republican? To 
compare his utterances on this subject at various times, as his 
opponents were not slow to do, would make him out to be both 
changeable and inconsistent, but a closer examination shows 
that while he was invariable in his adherence to republicanism 
as the best government in theory, he only varied in his opinion 
as to its immediate practicability. Hence he is found at one 
moment proclaiming the advantages of a republic — especially 
one like the United States — and the next supporting mon- 
archy. For instance, his pamphlet on systems of provincial 
administration proposed by Necker and Turgot, he boldly en- 
titled Observations d'un repuhlicain, and in it did not hesitate 
to declare that thoroughgoing reform was impossible under a 

1 Patriote Frangais, October 10, 1789. * Ibid., August 29, 1790. 

3 Ibid., June 5, 1791. « Ibid., August 20, 1790. 

6 IHd., December 23, 1790; March 30, 1791. « Ibid., November 12, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 165 

monarchy. But when once the monarch gave serious evidence 
of a willingness to further reform by calling the States-General, 
Brissot, with other theoretical republicans, seems to have real- 
ized that the "half might be better than the whole," and 
stopped talking about republicanism. If the king were really 
in earnest, he held that it might be well to give him a chance, 
and both in the prospectus to his journal and in his Plan de 
conduite he spoke of the king as the "friend of the people," and 
of the States-General as the "support of monarchy." It is to 
be borne in mind, however, that in writing these pamphlets he 
was anxious, on the one hand, not to offend the government, 
whose sanction he needed for his newspaper; nor, on the other 
hand, the people, whose votes he wanted for his election. 

As the Revolution progressed he not only continued his criti- 
cism of the prerogatives of royalty but became more open in 
again stating his admiration for the republican form of govern- 
ment, as such. " I hate royalty," he wrote in the Patriote Fran- 
qais of September 24, 1790, "and I have hated it from the mo- 
ment I began to reflect. Nothing seems to me more degrading 
to man. I adore the republican government, but," he added, 
" I do not believe the French are worthy yet of this holy re- 
gime." He would not for a moment admit, however, that they 
could not become ready for it, and when Clermont-Tonnere up- 
held monarchy as in itself the best form of government, Brissot 
attacked him almost with rage. Since France had now a repre- 
sentative legislative body and elective judges, it was republican, 
Brissot declared, in two thirds of its elements, and could not, 
therefore, any longer be considered a monarchy at all, in the 
sense meant by the monarchists. He then took up, one after the 
other, the statements of Clermont-Tonnere, and denied in the 
first place that a monarchy was necessary to the prosperity of 
France ; in the second place, that the extent of its territory pre- 
cluded the establishment of a republic; and in the third place, 
that the national character was unsuited to a republic. He main- 
tained, on the contrary, that France was in slavery under the old 
regime; that she was now only half free, and that she would 



166 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

never be wholly free as long as she had a king; that this doc- 
trine, far from being abominable, was the only one in conformity 
with reason, religion, and a sane policy; and that it was the doc- 
trines of Clermont-Tonnere, on the contrary, which were cruel 
and degrading to the human race and which deserved to be 
called abominable. But even while upholding republicanism 
with almost unseemly ardor, Brissot did not advocate the im- 
mediate establishment of a republic. A little later, in defend- 
ing Robert's ^ famous pamphlet Le Repuhlicanisme adopts a la 
France, he expressed himseK with more calmness. "That the 
republican government is preferable to monarchy," he wrote, 
"is a statement that is doubted only by people who have 
no initiative, by the weak, the unthinking and corrupt; but 
whether the republican government can be adapted alike to all 
countries, to all peoples, is a problem very difficult to solve. 
There is, in France, too much ignorance, too much corruption, 
too many cities and manufactures, too many men and too little 
land. ... I scarcely believe that republicanism could maintain 
itself side by side with these causes of degradation." But, while 
admitting that personally he did not consider France ready for 
a republic, he declared that whenever the people themselves 
were convinced that it was time to abolish the monarchy and 
set up a republic they had a perfect right to do so, and that 
consequently Robert, or any one else, was free to preach repub- 
licanism. Moreover, to deny that right, he asserted, was to 
make the declaration of rights a dead letter. ^ 

In spite of this explanation, Brissot was soon accused by 
Choderlos de Laclos in the Amis de la constitution of being 
guilty jointly with Robert of preaching republicanism. "Our 
constitution," declared Choderlos, "has two kinds of enemies 

^ Pierre Frangois Joseph Robert (born in 1763, died in 1826) was an active 
member of the Club of the Cordeliers, secretary to Danton during his ministry, 
and afterward a member of the Convention.; He was accused by the Girondins 
of buying up a quantity of rum contrary to the law, and eight casks found in 
his cellar were confiscated. In consequence of this affair he was dubbed with 
the name of "Robert Rhum." 

* Patriate Frangais, December 19, 1790. 



A JOURNALIST 167 

in France : the one wish a democracy and no king, the others a 
king and no democracy. Messrs. Robert, Brissot, etc., write for 
the first." ^ In answer, Brissot did not deny that he beUeved 
royalty was a curse, "but," he maintained, "to hold that opin- 
ion as a matter of political philosophy and in practice to reject 
the king adopted by the constitution were two entirely different 
things." 2 

Such an attitude might well give opportunity to those who 
were looking for ground for criticism. Brissot, they could de- 
clare with some point, was trying to be on both sides of the 
fence at once, only waiting the course of events to take his 
stand openly with the winning side. His attitude toward the 
whole affair of April 18 was a case in point. The king on 
that day had essayed to go out to mass at Saint-Cloud, but 
had been prevented by the national guards who had refused to 
obey Lafayette's command to allow the king to proceed. La- 
fayette had, thereupon, handed in his resignation, but on 
pressure had withdrawn it. In commenting on this event, Bris- 
sot asserted that the soldiers were right in disobeying Lafay- 
ette but that Lafayette was at fault in resigning. His resig- 
nation, he added, was a real calamity.' These opinions fell 
under the sharp eyes of Desmoulins, who criticized them 
severely, adding significantly that Brissot was not alone in 
asserting that the resignation of Lafayette was a calamity, as 
that was just what the aristocratic journals were saying.* 

In reality, however, Brissot, in spite of his leaning toward 
Lafayette, was on the side of the people against the king, but 
during the next few weeks he seems to have made up his mind 

^ No. 19, given in Buchez et Roux, as quoted by Brissot, ix, 433-41. 

2 Patriate Franqais, April 9, 12, 1791. » /^^-^^.^ April 22, 1791. 

* Revolutions de France et de Brabant, no. 74. Desmoulins quotes Brissot as 
saying that the soldiers were right in disobeying, that a general who was dis- 
obeyed ought to resign, and that Lafayette was wrong in resigning. Such a 
statement, as Desmoulins pointed out, involved a flat contradiction. What 
Brissot actually said was: "M. Lafayette a donnS sa demission de commandant- 
general. II a StS dSsobei par ses troupes, et un general desohei doit quitter : voila 
son motif; nous croyons qu'on a eu raison de desobeir aM. Lafayette; nous crayons 
quil a eu tort de donner sa demission." Patriate Frangais, April 22, 1791. 



168 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

more firmly to support the monarchial constitution, and, on 
June 9, 1791, he expressed himself emphatically on the subject. 
After stating, as he had done before, his belief in a republic as 
the ideal form of government, he added: "As for the present 
state of things, I regard as criminal every man who does not 
submit to the constitution decreed and who thinks of changing 
any part of it whatever by other than constitutional means." 

The flight to Varennes considerably modified these views. 
Suspicion, which had been grave since the 18th of April, was 
now transformed into certainty. There could no longer be any 
doubt that the king was opposed to the Revolution. Some de- 
cisive action must be taken at once in regard both to the king 
and to the constitution. As to what that action was to be there 
was wide difference of opinion. The Assembly was divided. 
Some wished to try the king; others proposed to follow the 
principle of the English law, which was embodied in the nearly 
finished constitution, that the king can do no wrong, and try 
only his subordinates. Some members of the Assembly felt that 
the king was in a measure justified in his refusal to submit to a 
constitution which had reduced his power to so extremely nar- 
row limits, and that the real remedy was to be found in so 
altering the constitution that it would give him real power. To 
others this seemed virtual suicide to the Revolution. The king, 
they argued, had proved that he could not be trusted and he 
must be deposed, if only to prevent further mischief. And not 
only this, but the form of the government must be changed. 
There, for the first time, a republic was suggested as an imme- 
diate practical solution. 

In this crisis, which promised the fulfillment of his long-cher- 
ished republican ideas, what was Brissot's attitude.? On the 
news of the king's flight he hurried off to the home of his friend 
Petion where he met Desmoulins, Robespierre, and Madame 
Roland, all gathered in great excitement. Robespierre, accord- 
ing to Madame Roland, was sure that the royal family had not 
fled without the help of a formidable party in Paris and that 
they, the patriots, might all expect to be murdered in a second 



A JOURNALIST 169 

St. Bartholomew. Petion and Brissot, on the other hand, were 
dehghted; they were sure the king had effectually destroyed 
any remnant of authority he might still possess, and had made 
it evident beyond a doubt that he was opposed to the consti- 
tution. Here, therefore, was their opportunity to make a bet- 
ter one and to prepare people for a republic.^ Some one appar- 
ently suggested that Lafayette might have to be reckoned with, 
but Brissot, still unheedf ul, in spite of Desmoulins's warnings, of 
the attitude of Lafayette toward the king on the 18th of April, 
declared that if Lafayette had favored the flight of the king, 
it was with the express purpose of giving France a republic. ^ 
Meanwhile, the capture of the king put another face on the 
situation. Robespierre was greatly relieved, but to the others 
it meant the return of the main source of trouble, with resulting 
complication and intrigue. 

Brissot, who was regarded as one of the leaders of the repub- 
lican party, was one of the first to be accused of republican 
conspiracy. In company with Claviere he was charged with 
having sent out messengers on the 25th of June to all the eighty- 
three departments bearing dispatches calculated to stir up the 
people in favor of republicanism. This accusation Madame 
Roland indignantly denied. At the same time she was not 
satisfied with Brissot's attitude in the Patriate Frangais, evi- 
dently because it was not republican enough.' To be sure, he 
had seized the occasion of the king's flight to attack the moder- 
ate party in the most severe terms. He did not use the word 
republican, but his implication was evident enough. " Will they 
still come to us," he asked in the Patriote Frangais, of June 22, 
"with their enthusiastic boasts of the good faith of kings? 

^ Memoires de Madame Roland, i, 205, note. 

* Desmoulins in no. 82 of Les Revolutions de France et de Brabant says, 
apropos of the arrival of the courier from Varennes: " La scene change. Brissot, 
qui trois heures auparavant me disait ckez Petion, soyez silr que si Lafayette a 
favorise Vevasion du roi, c'est pour nous donner la republique, Brissot ne pent 
plus nous endormir de ce conte bleu, puisque BouillS son cher cousin, son complice 
ne conspiroit pas sans doute pour la democratie." 

* Lettres, u, 311-12. 



170 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Will they vaunt the patriotism of our king, his attachment to 
the constitution? Citizens, you were all there, you heard the 
speeches made by the king to the National Assembly and the 
democratic Manifesto which he sent to all the courts of Europe. 
People put confidence in these fine protests; it was a crime even 
to doubt the word of a king. Ah, well! that patriotic king has 
fled! Louis XVI has himself broken his crown. . . . We must 
not merely half profit by the lesson." The next day Brissot 
wrote again: "A king after such perjury is not compatible with 
our constitution." Even in speaking of the flight he would have 
no terms used which might suggest a palliation of the offense, 
such as the proposed statement that the "king had been car- 
ried off." He approved, instead, the more equivocal phrase 
which was substituted, "that he had deserted the realm." ^ 
But Madame Roland wanted not merely comment on facts, 
but definite expression as to a constructive policy. This criti- 
cism evidently had weight with Brissot, for the next day he 
spoke with greater frankness and won the approving comment 
from Madame Roland that he was doing better.^ "It is evi- 
dent," he wrote, "that the king cannot possibly be the king of 
the new constitution. Even if he wanted to be now, even if he 
appeared to repent, to regret his perjury, to acknowledge his 
crime, would it do to allow him to keep the crown? ^ Would 
there not be danger still, that some day when he had sufficient 
force under his control, he might declare that his repentance 
was forced, and retract it? " Brissot regretted, he went on to 
say, that republicanism had not as many friends as might be 
expected. He wondered too, he added, why people were un- 
willing to give its real name to a condition which practically 
existed. 

Besides preaching republicanism in his own journal, Brissot 
was actively interested in trying to establish a new journal 
which was to have the defense of republicanism as its sole 

' Patriate Frangais, June 24, 1791. 

2 Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 314; June 25, 1791. 

* Patriate Frangais, June 25, 1791. 



A JOURNALIST 171 

purpose. The project grew out of discussions among the lit- 
tle republican group which was accustomed to gather at the 
home of Petion to talk over the situation. It included, be- 
sides Brissot and Petion, Condorcet, Claviere, Buzot, Thomas 
Paine, and Du Chastellet.^ Of this group Du Chastellet seems 
to have been the most enthusiastic and the most ready to take 
revolutionary action. As a result of his ardor the members 
of the National Assembly were surprised one morning to find 
posted up at the doors and in the corridors of their place of 
meeting the following prospectus drawn up by Thomas Paine, 
but signed by Du Chastellet : ^ — 

"The perfect tranquillity, the mutual confidence which 
reigned among us during the flight of the former king, the pro- 
found indifference with which we have seen him brought back, 
are the unequivocal signs that the absence of a king is worth 
more than his presence, and that he is not only a superfluity but 
a very heavy burden which weighs upon the entire nation. . . . 

"Animated by the ideas expressed above, a Society of Repub- 
licans has resolved to publish in detached sheets a work under 
the title of Le Republicain. Its object is to give people informa- 
tion upon this republicanism, which is calumniated because 
it is not understood; upon the uselessness, the vices and the 
abuses of royalty which prejudice is obstinate in defending, 
although they are understood." 

According to DumOnt, Du Chastellet in posting this notice 
was acting on his own responsibility and did not have the 
approval of the rest of the group; but as Dumont evidently 
wished to minimize his own part he is perhaps not to be cred- 
ited.^ At all events, the moderates in the Assembly regarded 
it as a most audacious proceeding and threatened to bring 
the authors before the courts.^ In spite of this threat, several 

1 Achille Du Chastellet (born 1759, died 1794), a distinguished officer 
closely connected with Brissot and the Girondins. 

^ Dumont, Souvenirs, 321-26; also Madame Roland, M6moires, i, 204-05, 
and notes. 

' Souvenirs, chap. xvi. 

* Memoires de Madame Roland, i, 204-05, note. 



172 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

numbers were published, but with the reestablishment of the 
king the pubHcation naturally came to an end.^ As long as it 
lasted Brissot gave it his full support in the Patriate Franqaisy 
quoted in full the prospectus, derided the demand of Malouet 
that its authors be haled before the courts, and printed the 
letter of Du Chastellet in reply to his critics.'^ 

Meanwhile he was constantly publishing other material most 
suggestively republican, such, for example, as an address of 
Bangal at Clermont in which the latter declared that liberty 
was incompatible with an hereditary monarchy; ^ an article on 
the abolition of royalty at Athens, which pointed out that its 
partial failure was owing to the fact that the first archon was 
the eldest son of the king; * and the announcement of a prize 
of three hundred livres for the person who could prove that a 
republican and a free citizen were not two inseparable things.^ 
He continued also himself to write in defense of republicanism, 
spoke in highest terms of Condorcet's speech on republicanism 
before the Cercle social on July 9,^ and hotly resented the sug- 
gestion afterward the basis of most violent attacks on the 
Girondins — that to make France a repubUc was to make it a 
federation of eighty-three republics.' 

However, he soon began to realize that public opinion was 
not ripe for so radical a change, and, while continuing to defend 
republicanism with vigor, he gradually moderated his demands 
as to the immediate action to be taken, and skillfully suggested 
that if it were thought that France were not ready for a repub- 
lic in its complete form, the essentials of that kind of govern- 
ment might be gained in another form. " If you keep royalty," 
he wrote, "let the executive council be elective, chosen by the 
departments and removable. We shall gain all if this point is 
gained and liberty will no longer be in danger. . . . This is the 

^ Souvenirs, chap. xvi. According to Dumont the republicans went so far 
in their attack on monarchy that they changed an article he sent them from 
London, with the view of making it more radical. 

2 Patriote Frangais, July 2 and 4, 1791. ^ Ibid., July 3, 1791. 

* Ibid., July 9, 1791. « Ibid., July 4, 1791. 

6 Ibid., July 17, 1791. ^ Ibid., July 9, 1791. 



A JOURNALIST 173 

idea which seemed to win the support of the majority of the 
Jacobins. It was proposed at first by M. Danton. The Jacobins 
are willing to have a king only on this condition. At the same 
time they are not willing to be thought republicans. Let us not 
dispute over terms. I ask for no better republic than such a 
monarchy. The Jacobins are republicans without knowing it. 
Like M. Jourdain they make prose without being aware of it. 
No matter! The prose is excellent." ^ A day or two later Bris- 
sot repeated this suggestion in modified form. Let the king be 
dethroned temporarily by the Assembly, which would then ap- 
peal to the primary assemblies on the question of his perma- 
nent dethronement. The crown would then pass to his son, a 
minor, who should be given an elective council chosen by the 
departments.- 

Again, going back to the idea of retaining the king himself, 
he set forth his general idea in a series of articles entitled "Za 
profession de foi sur la monarchie et sur le republicanisme," 
which, appeared first in the Patriote Frangais and was subse- 
quently republished in pamphlet form.' It was an extremely 
skillful piece of work, well calculated to conciliate the opposi- 
tion and to present republicanism in its best light. The impor- 
tance of the profession as showing Brissot's views at this critical 
time justifies quotation at length. He began by declaring that 
the monarchists and the republicans were really in closer agree- 
ment than people thoiight. They wanted peace and good order, 
and it only needed a frank discussion to show how much they 
had in common. He then proceeded to define a republic as a 
government in which all the powers were representative, that 
is to say, delegated; all the authorities temporary or removable 
and elected by the people directly or indirectly. Taking this 
definition as a basis he declared that five sixths of the authori- 
ties provided by the constitution were already representative, 
elective, and removable, and that the last sixth (the king) was, 

1 Patriote Frangais, June 29, 1791. « m^,^ July i, 1791, 

^ It originally appeared in the Patriote Frangais of July 5 and 6, 1791, and 
was republished in pamphlet form imder date of July 17. 



174 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

by a fiction of the law, also representative and elective. The 
only question which divided the monarchists and the republi- 
cans was whether the last sixth should be made representative 
in reality. The republicans said yes; the monarchists, no. 

"The republicans believe," he continued, "that royalty can 
be and ought to be abolished immediately. It can be abolished, 
they say, without violating the decree which preserves the 
monarchy, because a monarchy can exist without an hereditary 
king. Again, it can be done without violating that decree be- 
cause he who held the position of royalty, having protested 
against the constitution, has by that very fact abdicated and 
left us where we were before we declared the monarchy heredi- 
tary. It ought to be done because to preserve royalty would 
only be to preserve a source of calamity and disorder. . . . 

"The republicans maintain that royalty ought to be abol- 
ished," he went on to say, "because chance is as likely to call 
to the throne an idiot or a rogue as a capable and good man; 
because royalty involves a heavy weight of expense upon the 
nation, and because a good executive power and an energetic 
administration are possible without a king. But it may be 
objected that the office of king is necessary in the present crisis. 
In answer, let it be remembered that the office has practically 
been suspended for two years and legally for two weeks and 
society has not gone to pieces." Finally, he concluded, repub- 
licanism was much less likely than monarchy to bring about 
anarchy. For, if the people chose all their departments of 
government, they would have confidence in them. They would 
obey them with pleasure. 

But, while maintaining the superiority of a republic over a 
monarchy in the abstract, Brissot admitted that these argu- 
ments might not be sufficient to lead to the establishment of a 
republic immediately. As a practical substitute, he proposed a 
king with an elective and removable council.^ In the Patriote 
Frangais of July 1, he outlined a method for the formation of 
this council. The electoral assembly of each department should 
^ Again taken up in the speech of July 10. 



A JOURNALIST 175 

choose one citizen and these eighty-three citizens should 
choose the council from their own number.^ It was only as a 
substitute, Brissot was careful to add: the real and lasting 
remedy was to be a republic.^ In short, to quote M. Aulard, 
he changed his tactics but not his principles.^ 

As to the concrete question involved: "Was the king to be 
held responsible for his recent action? " Brissot kept firmly to 
his former opinion. In numerous articles in the Patriote Fran- 
gais, he inveighed against that section of the Assembly led by 
Barnave which upheld the inviolability of the king.* And on 
July 10 he made a notable speech on the subject at the Jacobin 
Club.^ He began by defending the Jacobins against the accusa- 
tion of republicanism, and declared that, while they demanded 
that the king be tried, they were at the same time defenders of 
the constitution. Then, passing directly to the question of the 
inviolability of the monarch, he asserted that such a claim was 
entirely without foundation. The sovereignty of the nation, he 
argued, recognized no one above itself, hence if the people were 

^ This method of choice by the departments suggests the federalist idea. 
See chap. xi. It is interesting to note that in a letter to Bangal des Issarts, 
dated July 1, 1791, Madame Roland speaks of an elective council and urges 
Bangal to work for it. She says: " Vous Jerez une chose excellente si vous pouver 
porter vos assemhUes primaires a delibirer que, les circonstances reqiterant un 
novel examen de la chose puhlique, elles ant voulu connaitre quels changements il 
convenait d'y apporter, et, d'apres une sage discussion, ont arrete sur telles con- 
siderations que r Assemblee "-nationale serait pri&e de convoquer toides celles du 
royaume pour avoir leur vceu sur la formation d'un conseil Slectif et temporaire, 
auquel serait confiS le pouvoir exicutif." Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 319. 

^ According to De Lacroix (U Intrigue devoilee), it was this production which 
finally gained Brissot his election to the Legislative. 

' Histoire politique, 134. 

* The question was discussed either editorially or in the form of commu- 
nicated articles in almost every issue, from the time of the king's flight to 
July 11. 

* Discours sur la question de savoir si le roi pent etrejuge 10 juillet, 1791. Bris- 
sot had become a member of the Club some time between December 21, 1790, 
and May 11, 1791, but the exact date of his admission does not appear. In the 
list of members drawn up December 21, 1790, his name is not included (Au- 
lard, Les Jacobins, i. Int., xxxix) and the first mention of his participation in 
the meetings of the Club was May 11, 1791, when he made a speech. Aulard, 
Les Jacobins, ii, 412. 



176 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

not inviolable, the king could not be inviolable; and, according 
to the declaration of rights, all men were equal before the law. 
Further, the inviolability of the king would only mean anarchy. 
Again, to take example from foreign experiences, the responsi- 
bility of the President of the United States worked no harm, 
but acted rather as a preventive; and in England, although the 
people admitted the inviolability of the king theoretically, they 
denied it practically whenever they wished to overturn the 
constitution. After having considered the question in the 
abstract, Brissot turned to the concrete objection that to hold 
the king accountable would bring down on France the venge- 
ance of foreign powers, and tried to show, by taking up in 
detail the condition of each country, that there was no possi- 
bility of any of them making war upon France. But if they 
did make war, he continued, with his unfailing optimism, 
France, as a free country, would easily be victorious. 

According to Madame Roland, Brissot fairly outdid himself 
in this speech. "He was no more a mere orator," she wrote in 
one of her letters; "he was a free man, defending the cause of 
the human race with the majesty, the nobility, and the supe- 
riority of the very genius of liberty. He convinced people's 
minds, he electrified their souls. . . . Three times the Assembly 
. . . rose in a body and threw their hats into the air in an irre- 
pressible enthusiasm." ^ And Desmoulins, who was not over- 
ready to praise Brissot, declared that he had exhausted the 
subject. Others had made speeches, but he had left nothing 
more to be said. His speech ought to be given the widest pub- 
licity. ^ The Jacobins were evidently of the same opinion, for 
they decreed that the speech be printed and copies sent to the 
National Assembly and to all the departments.^ 

^ Lettres, n, 326. ^ Ji^volutions de France et de Brabant, no. 85. 

^ Aulard, Les Jacobins, iii, 628. The following is an English appreciation 
of the speech (Diary of the Second Viscount Palmersfon in France, July 6 to 
August 31, 1791; describes meeting of Jacobin Club; about one thousand 
present) : — 

"Brissot read a speech very violent and inflammatory, to prove that the 
king's person was inviolable only for those Acts of Government which are 



A JOURNALIST 177 

A few days later the Club petitioned for dethronement, and, 
as an evident recognition of his influence, Brissot was appointed 
a member of the committee which was entrusted with the draw- 
ing up of the petition.^ This petition closed with a request 
that the National Assembly receive in the name of the nation 
the abdication which Louis XVI had already made on June 21, 
and that it use all constitutional means to provide for filling 
the vacant places. This last clause was violently opposed by 
the avowed republicans on the ground that it both upheld the 
throne and implied a desire to put on it a member of the 
Orleanist family. After a heated debate, the Jacobins finally 
decided to retain the clause in question, and although such ac- 
tion did not necessarily imply that they were Orleanists, it did 
show that they were not willing to lead in the immediate estab- 
lishment of a republic. This petition had already been pre- 
sented for signatures on the Champ de Mars, when news came 
that the Assembly had decided that the decree suspending the 
king should remain in force till he should accept the constitu- 
tion. The Jacobins, accordingly, withdrew their petition and 
appointed another committee, of which Brissot was a member, 
to draw up an address to the aflBliated societies, explaining and 
defending their position. 

According to Brissot's own account, his authorship of the 
petition had been made known by Laclos.^ At all events, his 
membership in these two committees was a public acknowledg- 

transacted through his Ministers; that there was a case in which he was per- 
sonally answerable; that he ought to be tried for his conduct, and that there was 
no danger to be apprehended from foreign powers on that account. His speech 
was lively and full of declamation, well suited to the temper of his audience, 
who received it with such continued bursts of applause as almost deafened me 
for the rest of the evening. He was very deficient in point of argument and 
totally passed over what are considered as the most material grounds by those 
who hold the other opinion. . . . Monsr. Brissot's speech, however, was per- 
fectly satisfactory to his audience, and the shouts of applause given by so many 
hundred people on such a subject, showed a kind of ferociousness of disposition 
which was infinitely disgusting to a moderate mind. It was ordered to be 
printed and distributed over the country, which I doubt not will be much 
inflamed by it." July 10, Dispatches of Earl Gower, 287-88. 

^ Aulard, Les Jacobins, in, 19. * Projet de dSfense, MSmoires, ii, 282. 



178 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

ment that he had retreated from the advanced republican posi- 
tion which for the last four weeks he had openly held, though 
with some wavering. His enemies hastened to say that it was 
also an acknowledgment that he was an Orleanist, a charge 
which his friends, in turn, hastened to deny.^ From his state- 
ment, later, that when urged by Laclos to present the petition 
he refused, on the ground of pressing business elsewhere, it 
looks as if he did not wish to make his part in the event too 
conspicuous. 2 At the time of his trial this charge of being a 
partisan of the house of Orleans was again brought up, and with 
more serious import. The debated clause, "ei a pouvoir a son 
[the king's] remplacement par tous les moyens constitutionnels," 
was adduced as a strong link in the alleged chain of proof that 
he was a royalist and Orleanist, and that, while ostensibly sup- 
porting republicanism, he was and always had been, its enemy. 
In his Projet de defense he admitted having yielded to the 
persuasions of Laclos to draw up the petition, but declared 
most emphatically that the last clause was afterward added by 
Laclos and that he was himself in no way responsible for it.' 
According to Madame Roland, who apparently derived her 
information from Brissot, Laclos openly proposed to him the 
addition of the clause, and on his strenuous objection agreed to 
withdraw it, but covertly managed to slip it in afterward.^ 
Despite Brissot's apparent failure to explain himseK at the 
time, his later defense is borne out by the fact that Laclos was 
a known Orleanist and opposed to Brissot's republican ideas.^ 

^ Bonneville, a friend of Brissot and an enemy of Laclos, came to the rescue 
of the former (Dard, La GSn^ral Ckoderlos de Laclos, 323), and in the Bouche 
de Fer of July 17, wrote: "Sur le nom du rSdacteur le patriate Brissot, nous dif- 
firons de rendre compte des violens soupgons qui se sont Sieves h la lecture {ar- 
rieres-pensSes OrlSanistes) nous ne les partageons plus. Brissot est un patriate 
integre." Quoted in Bouchez et Roux, x, 447. 

2 MSmoires, n, 282. ' Ibid., n, 282-83. 

* " Ce meme Laclos proposait d'insSrer un article qu'il annongait d'un air sans 
consequence, mais qui edt Ste favorable d, d^OrlSans, que Brissot le rejeta avec 
indignation, en mettant & la place celui qui invitait a la Republique pour laquelle 
ce moment Hait le vSritable et eilt itS bien jrrecieux." Memoires de Madame 
Roland, n, 285. 

» Dard, 158, 275. 



A JOURNALIST 179 

It receives further substantiation from Dard's ^ assertion that 
the clause in question was in an unknown hand.^ 

The events which followed the withdrawal of the Jacobin 
petition are well known: the preparation by the dissatisfied 
radical societies of another petition, which said nothing about 
constitutional means of filling the throne; the proclamation of 
Bailly, the Mayor of Paris, and Lafayette, the commander of 
the national guard, both of whom were adherents of monarchy, 
forbidding any gathering in the Champ de Mars; the assem- 
bling of the crowds in spite of the proclamations and the firing 
on them by Lafayette's troops. In the conservative reaction 
which followed, an attempt was made to punish the instigators 
of the republican movement. Brissot, with other republicans, 
was accused of being in the pay of foreign powers, but for some 
reason, he himself was not arrested; a fact which was afterward 
alleged against him as another evidence that he was a royalist 
and had a secret understanding with the reactionaries. His es- 
cape seemed to be accounted for, in part, by the fact that the 
petition presented was not the one with the drawing up of 
which he was connected; and in part because, when it came to 
the actual presentation of the latter petition for signatures, he 
remained behind the scenes. At all events, he stood his ground 
fairly well, considering the dangerous position in which he was 
placed, and he did not suspend his journal nor flee from Paris. 
But while he admitted that he had held republican opinions 
and preached them in his journal, he denied that he had had 
any part in the active republican movement. Nor were the 
people to blame, he declared with his usual readiness to defend 
the democratic against the bourgeois element. They had 
merely been deceived by a few seditious leaders.^ But even 

^ The biographer of Laclos. 

^ In the judicial investigation, which was held immediately after the affair 
of the 17th of July, Brissot testified that he had had nothing to do with the print- 
ing, distributing, or signature of the petition. M. Mathiez, in commenting on 
this testimony, calls attention to the fact that Brissot took good care not to say 
anything as to the dravnng up of the petition. Mathiez, Le Club des Cordeliers, 
262, and note. 

* Patriote Franqais, July 20, 1791. 



180 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Brissot, wrote Madame Roland, in terms which showed her 
high opinion of his com-age, did not dare to tell the entire truth 
about the events of the last few days. To do so would only be 
to bring down the knife which was suspended over the heads of 
the republicans.^ 

He was certainly bold enough in denouncing Lafayette. 
"The deed was done," he wrote, "by a man who has told me a 
hundred times that he was a republican; who called himself the 
friend of the republican Condorcet; who told me that he cor- 
dially detested the vile persons with whom he is to-day con- 
nected. . . . There is from now on nothing more in common 
between him and me." ^ Brissot also denounced the Assembly 
for its proposal to send his fellow republicans before a special 
court. Such a com-t, he declared, was nothing short of a star 
chamber, or the rule of the Thirty at Athens; the courageous 
friends of liberty might as well prepare to drink hemlock.^ 
Meanwhile, as the conservative reaction had decided that the 
proposed constitutional monarchy was not to give place to a 
republic, the constitution was once more brought up for dis- 
cussion. And once more Brissot opposed with all his might the 
tendency to strengthen the power of the executive, and urged 
provision for periodic conventions as a means of amendment, 
though he now opposed, in view of the disturbed conditions of 
the country, the submittal of the present constitution to the 
people.^ Of one important change that was made, the lowering 
of the qualifications for the position of deputy, he thoroughly 
disapproved, supporting Robespierre, Petion, and Buzot in 
their opposition, on the ground that it was only an ostensible 
concession to democracy, since at the same time the qualifica- 
tions for electors were raised. As the electors would be apt to 
choose deputies from among their own number, democracy had 
lost rather than gained by the change.^ 

^ " Toutes les relations des fails de dimanche sont fausses, & commencer par le 

proces-verbal de la municipalite: personne nose f aire les vSritables, meme B'st 

[Brissot], car ce serait de plonger le couteau sous lequel on est tenu." Lettres, ii, 341. 

2 Patriote Frangais, July 18, 1791. » Ibid., July 23, 1791, 

* See p. 135. ^ Patriate Frangais, August 12, 1791. 



A JOURNALIST 181 

The constitution, as thus completed, satisfied neither the 
conservatives who wanted the power of the king strengthened, 
nor Brissot and his friends, who wanted it lessened; but both 
agreed for the time in supporting the constitutional monarchy 
as thus established. Brissot soon obtained a seat in the legisla- 
tive body under this new government and a chance to take a 
more direct part in political life. His success was due largely to 
the reputation he had gained as editor of the Patriote Frangais. 
In this capacity his writings on the formation of the constitu- 
tion and on the events of the day had made him widely known, 
and decidedly influential as a supporter of the extreme left and 
an opponent, not only of the royalists, but also of the mod- 
erates, the advocates of constitutional monarchy such as Bar- 
nave and Lameth. In short, though he had in the end accepted 
an undemocratic monarchy he had made a name for himseK as 
an upholder of the practice, as well as the principles, of democ- 
racy and sovereignty of the people. 

After his election to the Legislative Assembly he still kept 
the direction of his journal,^ and thus commanded a double 
portion of influence. Through the Patriote Frangais he con- 
tinued to stand for humanitarian principles, to uphold Ameri- 
can precedents, and to preach democratic republicanism as a 
theory,^ — even though he wavered in regard to republicanism 
in practice. At the same time that Brissot was coming to be 
recognized as a leader of the Girondins, he made his paper more 
and more the organ of that party in the Legislative Assembly 
and later in the Convention; and as such it vehemently advo- 
cated the war, attacked Robespierre, denounced the Commune 
for its opposition to the Girondins, and fell with the Girondins 
in their defeat. During this later period interest is focused on 
Brissot as a legislator, rather than as an editor. The later his- 
tory of the Patriote Frangais may, therefore, best be studied in 
connection with the Legislative Assembly and the Convention. 

^ He did give it up for a brief time but soon resumed it. See p. 361. 
2 A dispatch of Earl Gower of September 16, 1791, speaks of the Patriote 
Frangais as the most republican journal published in Paris. 



CHAPTER VIII 

BEISSOT AS A HUMANITARIAN 

La SoditS des Amis des Noirs 

* If any Frenchman in public life had been asked, up to the 
close of the Constituent Assembly, for what Brissot was best 
known, he would undoubtedly have answered without hesita- 
tion, for his work as the leader of the Amis des Noirs. Indeed, 
to his connection with this society which had so large an influ- 
ence on the colonial question and which was so intensely hated 
by the white planters, Brissot owed a large share of his reputa- 
tion for good or for ill. He was one of the most zealous humani- 
tarians of the eighteenth century. But of all his many and 
varied humanitarian interests the cause to which he was most 
devotedly attached was that of the negro. In his ardent desire 
to extend to this oppressed and inferior race some measure of 
the liberty and equality which Frenchmen were claiming for 
themselves, and particularly to abolish the slave trade, he 
established La Societe des Amis des Noirs. 

His immediate incentive to this imdertaking was the ener- 
getic work of an English organization directed against the 
slave trade. As early as 1727 the English Quakers had ex- 
pressed their disapproval of that trade; and in 1761 they agreed 
to exclude from their society all persons who should be found to 
be concerned in it. In 1772 their cause was furthered by the 
famous judicial decision of Lord Mansfield, that as soon as a 
slave set his foot on the shores of England he became free.^ In 
1783 they formed an association "for the relief and liberation 
of the negro slaves in the West Indies and for the discourage- 

^ "The air of England has long been too pure for a slave and every man is 
free who breathes it. Every man who comes into England is entitled to the 
protection of the English law." Somerset v. Stewart, Loffs Reports, State 
Trials, i. 201. 



A HUMANITARIAN 183 

ment of the slave trade on the coast of Africa." The interest 
aroused by the Quakers led Dr. Pinkard, the Vice-Chancellor 
of the University of Cambridge, to propose as the Latin prize 
essay at Cambridge for the year 1785 the subject An liceat 
invitos in servitutem dare. The prize was won by Thomas Clark- 
son, who published his work in English in 1786 in an extended 
form, under the title of " Essay on the Slavery and Commerce 
of the Human Species." The publication of this essay marked 
an epoch in the struggle against slavery. Clarkson was joined 
by Wilberforce and Granville Sharp, and under the presidency 
of the latter a committee was formed in 1787 for the suppres- 
sion of the slave trade. ^ 

Just at this juncture Brissot arrived in England, whither 
he fled to avoid the lettre de cachet threatened on account of 
his pamphlet. Point de hanqueroute, and through his previous 
affiliations with the Quakers was brought into connection with 
the work of the committee now just getting under way.^ He 
was already greatly interested in the negro and had rushed to 
his defense against the strictures made on him by the Marquis 
de Chastellux.^ He now returned to France, thrilled with the 
idea of participating in so noble a cause. ^ He stirred up his 
friends to interest in the subject, after his usual fashion laid 
plans for disseminating knowledge by providing for the trans- 
lation of books and pamphlets, and appealed for help to Mira- 
beau. As it happened Mirabeau had just secured government 
permission for the publication of his Analyse des papiers an.- 
glais. Moved doubtless, in part, by the probable advantage to 
himself, he not only agreed to convince the government of the 
utility of allowing him to include translations of works on the 
slave question as a kind of supplement to his journal, but of- 
fered Brissot very advantageous business terms for the arrange- 

1 Clarkson, History of the rise, progress and accomplishmeni of the abolition 
of the African slave trade, i, 257. 

* See p. 39. » See p. 59. 

* "Ce qui est certain c'est que ce club itait une importation anglaise, qui ne 
nous a pas etS moins funeste que les autres marchandises arrivees de la Grande 
Bretagne." Beaulieu, Essais historiques sur la Revolution franqaise, ii, 489, note. 



184 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

ment.^ This arrangement he seems to have faithfully carried 
out, for as long as the Analyse lasted, it continued to be the 
organ of the Amis des Noirs, fulfilling the function which was 
afterward taken up by Brissot's own newspaper. 

Meantime Brissot had written a letter to the English society 
in which with a superb disregard of international barriers he 
offered to act as their agent in France and promote a subscrip- 
tion there. At this proposition the English society was some- 
what alarmed, and while thanking him warmly and electing 
him and Claviere honorary members and correspondents, 
made haste to decline his offer of raising funds, and suggested 
that a better method would be to organize in France a separate 
society.'^ 

Whereupon Brissot through U Analyse des papiers anglais 
promptly announced the proposed formation of such a society 
and begged for the cooperation of all the friends of humanity. 
As a result of his efforts, on February 19, 1788, a handful of 
men gathered at No. 3 rue Frangaise to effect an organization.^ 
Brissot counted eleven besides himself among the founders, but 
according to the records of the society they numbered eight, 
including, besides Claviere and Mirabeau, Valady and Carra, 
afterward associated with Brissot and the Girondins. To this 
little company Brissot made a stirring appeal, setting forth in 
eloquent terms the work to be done in bringing about the aboli- 
tion of the slave trade and of slavery, and the urgent need of 
organized effort. Although the task seemed beyond their pow- 
ers, they might well be encouraged by what had already been 
accomplished in America and in England. In order to achieve 

* In the number of L' Analyse des pajners anglais of February 29 to March 
6, 1788, Mirabeau announced the pubUcation of works on slavery — at a 
reduced price to those who subscribed for them in connection with his paper. 
See also Brissot, Mimoires, n, 79. See also the Extrait du registre referred to 
below. 

* Proceedings of the committee for the abolition of the slave trade, 1781- 
1819, 3 vols., British Museum, Mms. 21254-21256. 

» See Extrait du registre de la societS at the Institute, Paris, papers of Con- 
dorcet; also article by Cahen: La SociitS des Amis des Noirs el Condorcet in La 
Revolution frangaise, June, 1906. 



A HUMANITARIAN 185 

like results he recommended that they translate and publish 
English works on the subject, make appeals through the news- 
papers, correspond with the English society and carry on re- 
searches on the condition of slavery in the French colonies.^ 
The eight accordingly proceeded to action, drew up the outline 
of a constitution, and unanimously chose Claviere president. 
Thus was formed La Societe des Amis des Noirsr 

A part, at least, of the plan was immediately carried out, 
for there began to appear in L' Analyse des papiers anglais of 
Mirabeau works on slavery. Their zeal seems to have startled 
the English society, for, a few weeks later, the latter felt obliged 
to issue a formal statement in reference to a wild rumor that 
was abroad to the effect that it was trying to bring about the 
immediate abolition of slavery in the English colonies. It had 
no such intention, it declared, and in order to make perfectly 
clear what its intentions actually were it wished to state pub- 
licly its purpose of keeping strictly to its main aim — the aboli- 
tion of the slave trade.^ It is not improbable that this declara- 
tion was provoked by Brissot's speech at the founding of the 
Amis des Noirs which was printed under the title Discours sur 
la necessite d'etablir a Paris une societe pour concourir avec celle 
du Londres, a Vaholition de la traite et de Vesclavage des negres. 
At all events, the English society issued the above protest, and 
whether or not the French society really felt itself to blame, it 
decreed that the protest should be sent to all the journals of 
France. If it issued a like declaration on its own behaK there 
appears to be no record of it. 

Meanwhile Brissot was zealously seeking to attach to the 
society persons to whose humanitarian interests it would seem 
to appeal, particularly those whose position and influence 
might be of help to them. He tried to secure the adhesion of 

* Although Brissot's name does not appear in connection with this speech, it 
was undoubtedly his, as he says in his memoirs (ii, 78) that the speech which 
he made at the opening meeting was printed by Mirabeau, and this is the only 
speech made on that occasion printed by him. 

* Exirait du registre. For a list of the members see Appendix B. 
' L' Analyse des papiers anglais, i, April 4, 1788. 



186 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, and of Herault de Sechelles, a cele- 
brated lawyer in the service of the government,^ and even 
ventured to write to Thomas Jefferson. But in these cases he 
was not successful. The iBrst declined on the ground of ill 
health; Herault de Sechelles felt that on account of his oflBcial 
position it would hardly be seemly for him to appear to be the 
accomplice of a society preparing for revolution; and Jefferson 
also, while professing the greatest interest in the work, ex- 
plained that as the official representative of the United States 
he too was precluded from active cooperation. ^ Others, Brissot 
was more successful in persuading to join the society. Among 
them were Lubersac,^ Bishop of Chartres; Brach, royal censor 
and director general of exports; the Marquis of Beaupoil de 
Saint- Aulaire,^ the Marquis of Pampeluna,^ Lanthenas,^ 
Crevecoeur; ^ and the Englishman, Pigott.^ Of the various peo- 
ple to whom he appealed, Lafayette seems to have been of the 
greatest help. He had responded cordially to Brissot's invi- 
tation to become a member of the society, and though he was 
not present at the first meeting he was considered one of the 

1 Marie Jean Herault de Sechelles (born 1759, died 1794) was a writer and 
lawyer of considerable reputation on account of his oratorical powers. He was 
elected to the Legislative Assembly, where he took his place on the extreme 
left, and afterward to the Convention, of which he was twice president. The 
constitution drawn up under the leadership of the Mountain in the summer of 
1793 was chiefly his work. He followed the policy of Danton and perished with 
him. 

2 Brissot, Correspondance, 165-66. 

3 Jean Baptiste Joseph, Baron de Lubersac (bom 1740, died 1822), became 
Bishop of Chartres in 1780 and was elected as deputy of the clergy of Chartres 
to the States-General. At first he showed liberal tendencies, but refused to 
accept the civil constitution of the clergy, emigrated and returned to France 
only after the Concordat. 

* Martial Louis Beaupoil de Saint-Aulaire (born 1719), was a bishop of Poi- 
tiers and was elected by the clergy of Poitiers to the States-General, where he 
sat among the royalists. He subsequently emigrated to England where he died. 

* Probably Jacques Joseph de Guyon de Geis, Baron de (born 1748, died 
1789), deputS suppleant to the States-General. 

6 See p. 121. ' See p. 69. 

8 Robert Pigott was one of the EngUsh Quakers who had so large an influence 
on Brissot. Various articles by him were inserted by Brissot in the Patriote 
Frangais. 



A HUMANITARIAN 187 

founders, and took it upon himself to set forth the purpose of 
the society in as favorable a light as possible before the minister 
Brienne. If he could not convince him of its usefulness, he 
would at least try to persuade him that it was innocuous. 
Brienne did not seem to have been altogether persuaded, how- 
ever, for he warned Lafayette that it was a delicate question 
which the Amis des Noirs were essaying to settle and that they 
needed to handle it with great care. But at any rate he let the 
society alone. This freedom from molestation under a despotic 
government meant much to them, and Brissot, even after he 
had come to regard Lafayette as a traitor to the Revolution, 
never forgot what the Amis des Noirs owed to his protection 
and assistance.^ It was also indebted to him for introducing 
Condorcet, who was an especially valuable acquisition, as he 
joined with Lafayette in bringing in other persons of note and 
influence.^ 

Besides bringing in new members Condorcet did good service 
to the society by drawing up a constitution. This document was 
divided into eight chapters and sixty -four articles, of which the 
most important were as follows: Membership was unlimited 
as to numbers and was open alike to men and women, French- 
men and foreigners; but as it was stated later that ladies would 
be welcome to the social semi-annual meetings when reports 
of the work of the society would be made, it was obvious that 
they were not welcome at the ordinary meetings, nor expected 
to take part in the public work of the society. No one would be 
admitted to membership, however, except on presentation of a 
member who would stand sponsor for him and who was sup- 
ported by four other members. The annual dues were two 
louis, but the members might give more. Meetings were to be 
held regularly on Tuesday, and besides the regular meeting a 
special meeting was held at the end of each semester to hear 
reports of papers. Members were to be notified in advance of 
the meetings and of the subjects to be discussed. The officers 
were to be a president, a secretary, a treasurer, and a general 

^ MSmoires, ii, 76-78. 2 /^^-^/^ ^^ gg 



.188 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

committee, for the election of each of whom a different method 
was provided. The president was to be elected from the general 
assembly by a majority vote from members of the committee 
present, to serve three months, and then be reeligible only after 
an interval of three months. For the election of the secretary, 
evidently the most important officer, the assembly in the ses- 
sion preceding the one in which the secretary was to be elected, 
was to add five members to the committee. The body thus con- 
stituted was to choose at least four names to present to the 
assembly, by whom the choice was to be made. The term of 
office was to be two years, but the secretary might remain in 
office another two years if he were supported by two thirds of 
the members, and still another two years if supported by three 
fourths. Even if he did not receive the requisite majority, 
he nevertheless continued to be reeligible, but in competition 
with others. His salary, which he might refuse, was to be eight 
hundred francs, besides expenses of the office. He was also to 
have a clerk with a salary of six hundred francs. The treasurer 
was to be elected by the assembly at large, the term to be two 
years, with continued reeligibility. The committee, consisting 
of twenty -one members, including the president, secretary, and 
treasurer, ex-qfflcio, elected for three years, seven at a time, was 
to have charge of the business of the society and particularly 
of preparing translations. Numerous other rules providing for 
the procedure in the meetings suggest that the society looked 
forward to vigorous, not to say acrimonious, discussions.^ 

The most striking thing about the whole constitution is the 
faith which it indicates on the part of the foimders in the 
growth of their organization and the seriousness of their under- 
taking. Brissot's apparent failure to have part in it is explained 
by the fact that it seems to have been drawn up during his 
absence in America. ^ The society was hardly organized when 

1 The manuscript of the RSglements is found at the library of the Arsenal. 
It is printed in a pamphlet at the Bibliotheque nationale and also by M. Cahen 
in the article referred to above in La Revolution frangaise, June, 1906. 

* Article by M. Cahen, referred to above. 



A HUMANITARIAN 189 

he set out upon his travels. Indeed, one part of his purpose 
in making this journey was to study the problem of slavery 
in the new world. Before starting he wrote to the English 
society of his intention, — whereupon they commended him to 
like societies at Philadelphia and New York and asked them 
to aid him in collecting information.^ 

In spite of the formation of the constitution, the French 
society, if Brissot's own account is to be believed, languished 
and nearly perished during his absence.^ There certainly seems 
to be no evidence of great activity on its part till the spring 
of 1789, when, after Brissot's return from America, it became 
extremely active. In the month of February a meeting was 
held to listen to his report of the slavery problem as he had seen 
it in America. This report included a statement of what had 
been done with regard to the importation of slaves, with regard 
to slavery, the steps taken for the education of the negroes and 
an explanation of the compromises in the constitution of the 
United States on the subject, and a firm expression of belief in 
the capacity of the negro.' 

The opportunity now offered to all classes of the French 
people to draw up statements of their grievances was also the 
opportunity of the Amis des Noirs, and they lost no time in 
preparing an address to be sent to all the bailliages of the king- 
dom. In this address the bailliages were begged to instruct their 
deputies to try to induce the States-General to consider means 
of abolishing the slave trade and to prepare the way for the 
abolition of slavery itself.* At the opening of the States- 
General they appointed a committee, of which Condorcet and 
Brissot were members, to keep track of legislation and to 

^ British Museum, Proceedings of the committee, Mms. 21254-21256. 

* MSmoires, ii, 74. 

^ MSmoire sur les noirs de I'AmSrique septentrionale, lue & VassemhUe de la 
Sociiti des Amis des Noirs, le 9 Janvier, 1789. 

* The minutes of the English committee for April 21, 1789, state that a 
translation of the address of the society in France to the bailliages of that king- 
dom had been sent to some of the public papers and that it was resolved that 
two thousand copies of the said address be primted. 



190 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

defend the interests of the negro whenever they were in ques- 
tion. They further drew up a letter to M. Necker in criticism 
of certain statements which he had made in a speech to the 
States-General on the slave trade. ^ 

A letter was also addressed "to the deputies of the three 
orders to urge them to follow the example of the English and 
choose a committee charged with examining the cause of the 
negro." It was signed simply " Un ami des noirs," but may 
possibly have been the work of Brissot. The slave trade, the 
writer argued, should be abolished at once, and for six reasons: 
(1) it was the only cause of most of the wars between negro 
princes, and its abolition would save the life of a considerable 
number of sailors and of infinite numbers of negroes; (2) the 
continuance of the slave trade was ruinous to the nation; (3) the 
colonies could get along without the slave trade, as experience 
had demonstrated; (4) it was necessary to abolish the slave 
trade if the colonies were to be preserved and numberless abuses 
remedied; (5) the negroes were sadly maltreated, and the aboli- 
tion of the slave trade was the only means to ameliorate their 
condition; (6) it would be easy to manage the revolts which 
the planters predicted would be the result. 

In attempting to carry on its work the society was now 
assisted by Clarkson, who was sent over to help them by the 
English society. The latter, evidently mindful of Brissot's 
quixotic schemes of cooperation at the time of the foimding of 
the Amis des Noirs, feared that his enthusiasm might not be 
properly balanced with caution; and, when the proposition was 
made that the two societies combine their efforts to induce the 
governments of their respective countries to take concerted 
action against the slave trade, the English society perceived 
that any such proposition coming from the English side would 
be regarded by the French government with suspicion. Clark- 
son was accordingly warned to beware of involving the English 
society in political complications.^ When he arrived at Paris 

^ Lettre h M. Necker. 

* Life of Wilberforce (ed. by R. I. and S. WUberforce), i, S831. 



A HUMANITARIAN 191 

in July, 1789, he found that the enthusiasm of many of the mem- 
bers of the Amis des Noirs had somewhat died down. ^ It would, 
perhaps, be more correct to say that they were so actively en- 
gaged in actual revolution that they had no time left to think 
of a reform which was not a matter of immediate and press- 
ing importance. Those members of the society who were also 
members of the National Assembly were almost constantly 
engaged at Versailles, those who were connected with the 
municipal government were absorbed in their work at the 
hotel de ville, while others were occupied in learning the use of 
arms or in doing guard duty. Attendance at the meetings of 
the society naturally fell off, and although Clarkson had been 
introduced to the Duke of Rochefoucauld, Condorcet, Petion, 
Claviere, Brissot, and Lafayette as active workers, when he 
came to attend a meeting of the committee, he was siu'prised 
to find that Brissot was the only one of those mentioned who 
was present. 

The zeal of those who were there was unabated. They de- 
cided to seek an audience with M. Necker, through Clarkson 
who was to be accompanied by Condorcet, De Bourges, and 
Brissot; also to write to the president of the National Assembly, 
asking him to appoint a day to hear the cause of the negro. 
They further proposed to recommend to the committee in Lon- 
don to draw up a petition to be signed by as many as possible 
of the friends of the cause in England, and addressed to the 
National Assembly of France, praying for the abolition of the 
slave trade by the French government. As delicately as he 
could Clarkson insinuated the impropriety of the last motion, 
but the committee would not listen to him for a moment. " The 
National Assembly of France," they declared, "would glory in 
going contrary to the example of other nations in a case of 
generosity and justice." Finding his protests in vain, Clarkson 
could only reply that he would communicate the measure to the 

^ Clarkson, History of the rise, progress and accomplishment of the abolition 
of the African slave trade, ii, chap. ii. What follows concerning the work of 
the society and its friends till the end of 1789 is also from Clarkson. 



192 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

committee in London, but that he could not answer for the 
part that they would take in it. He was soon proved to be 
right in his assumption as to the attitude of the English com- 
mittee, for they refused unequivocally to have anything to do 
with such a petition. Neither did the other measures taken at 
this meeting come to anything, for, though Necker did grant 
the delegation a very brief interview, he had far too overwhelm- 
ing responsibilities of his own in trying to manage the finances, 
to give any attention to the African slave trade; and if the 
president of the Assembly answered their letter, they never 
received it. 

At the next meeting they decided to write again to the presi- 
dent of the Assembly. A new president had come into office 
and might be more friendly to their cause. Furthermore, it was 
necessary, they declared, to bestir themselves in order to meet 
the machinations of the merchants, planters, and others inter- 
ested in the slave trade, who were holding daily meetings to 
watch and thwart the plans of the Amis des Noirs. As no answer 
was received to this letter either, they made up their minds 
that it had been intercepted. They seem to have had some 
reason for their suspicions, for, at the following meeting, 
Claviere produced anonymous letters which he had received 
and in which it was stated that if the society did not dissolve 
he and the rest of the members would be stabbed, and that 
three hundred persons had banded together prepared to carry 
out these threats. Clarkson had also received similar letters, 
which, on examination, proved to be written by the same hand 
as those received by Claviere. Not content with threats, the 
enemies of the Amis des Noirs attacked them through the press, 
charging them with the intention of sending twelve thousand 
muskets to Santo Domingo in order to promote an insurrection 
in that island.^ These rumors were so industriously circulated 

^ It was also charged that the society was run by foreigners. See Letire aux 
bailliages de France, December 1, 1789. " Les sieurs Clavieres [sic] et du Rovray 
sont les chefs de cette Secte infdme, ce sont deux Genevois qui ont ite chasses de leur 
Patrie pour sedition. Le nomm6 Clarkson, Anglois, est aussi a Paris depuis queU 
ques mois, sHl y rSpand I' argent de VAngleterre, celle-ci n'y perd rien ; cest semer 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 225 

enemy of the constitution? Finished, entire, to-day it com- 
mands respect, and its worship is in my heart; it is in the heart 
of all patriots." ^ 

But, in this same address, in speaking of the difficulties with 
which the legislature would have to contend, he declared that 
the executive power was without energy and without confi- 
dence, — a statement, which, while it might be taken to refer 
to the ministry, might at the same time be suspected of imply- 
ing distrust of the king himself, and of containing the germ of 
opposition to the whole executive department as provided for 
in the constitution. The royalist journals were fundamentally 
right. The above declaration as to his devotion to the consti- 
tution, while not untrue, was not the whole truth. Brissot's 
ardor was for the new constitution only so far as it represented 
a victory over the old regime; for it, as a finished and unchange- 
able form of government, his ardor was much less; and in the 
new legislature he took his seat, not with the right, which 
wanted to maintain the constitution, the whole constitution, 
and the constitution at any cost; but with the left, which, 
while not openly opposing the constitution, by no means ac- 
cepted it as the climax of the Revolution and which was not in 
the least inclined to regard the Revolution as finished. It was 
with the deputies from the Gironde, Vergniaud, Gensonn6, and 
Guadet, who formed the nucleus of that group afterward to be 
known as the Girondins, with whom he especially allied himself. 
According to Paganel, his motive in connecting himself with 
them was that he might have their support in his contest in 
behalf of the mulattoes.^ At all events, his opinions soon ac- 
quired much weight with them, and he became so important 
and influential a member of the Assembly that his political 
adherents, both within the Assembly and without, were known 
as Brissotins. As has been said, this was the period of his great- 
est influence. This influence was due in part to his numerous 
speeches before the Assembly. He always spoke with clearness 

* Patriate Frangais, September 17, 1791. 
2 Paganel, Essai historique, ii, 228. 



226 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

and some force, and occasionally with eloquence, but he was 
not a great orator. His real strength lay in the tremendous 
earnestness with which he worked, in his untiring perseverance, 
and in his zeal in organizing and directing afifairs outside as 
well as in the Assembly itself.^ 

The first business of the Assembly was to provide the neces- 
sary machinery for work, and it had hardly begim the task 
when Brissot, with his usual readiness, came forward with a 
plan for the organization of committees; but, although he made 
every effort to be heard, he could not obtain the floor. Un- 
daunted by this failure, he gave the speech at the Jacobin Club 
and had it printed. It was a clear and forcible argument in 
favor of having as few committees as possible. Committees 
were necessary, he admitted, but to create many committees 
was to increase ministerial influence, to hinder freedom of 
opinion, and to encourage the despotism of individuals. He 
would even dispense, in time of peace, with a separate diplo- 
matic committee, but would unite it with the committees on 
military and marine affairs, under the general name of the com- 
mittee of safety and defense.^ A diplomatic committee was 
nevertheless formed on October 25, and Brissot's reputation 
for an extended knowledge of foreign affairs secured his election 
to it.3 

As the body to which foreign affairs were referred, the diplo- 
matic committee was one of the most important, if not the most 
important, of all the committees; and Brissot, by virtue of his 
position as its best known member, with the possible excep- 
tion of Koch, the learned professor of international law at the 

1 See p. 420. 

2 Discours sur Vorganisation des comiUs destinl a etre prononce a VAssemhUe 
nationale le 12 octobre 1791, prononce aus Jacobins le H octobre. See his prelim- 
inary note. Many of his later speeches, both at the Club and at the Assembly, 
were printed for him by these respective bodies. 

^ Proces-verbal de I'Assemblee nationale, i, 232. See also Ibid., October 18, 
1791. He was elected secretary on that date. There were six secretaries, re- 
newed by half every two weeks. The committee was in part renewed (by lot) 
March 2, but Brissot remained in the committee. He withdrew on June 6, 
and was reelected July 17. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 227 

University of Strasbourg, was thus able to exercise a dominat- 
ing influence upon foreign affairs.^ In view of his previous 
utterances the general policy which Brissot would follow was 
not difficult to predict. In his opinion, diplomacy was an 
adjunct of the old regime, and since the old regime was an evil, 
diplomacy was an evil. He failed even to appreciate the possible 
use of diplomacy as a means of avoiding war, and urged France 
to follow the example of the United States with regard to the 
diplomatic corps. He especially urged that the number of per- 
sons employed be diminished and that the salaries of those who 
were retained be reduced. Such measures, Brissot protested, 
would only tend toward peace. ^ 

The immediate diplomatic problems which confronted the 
Assembly in its opening days involved the relation of France 
both to the emigres and to the German princes along the Rhine, 
to whom many of the emigres had fled. The revolutionists were 
incensed against these princes for the support they had given 
to the anti-revolutionary party; and the German princes, many 
of whom had property within French territory, were incensed 
against the revolutionists on account of the recent abolition of 
feudal rights. Alleging that they still held their feudal privi- 
leges from the emperor, they appealed to him to redress their 
wrongs.^ At the same time they continued to aid the emigres, 
who, in turn, were stirring them up against France. What was 
to be the attitude of France toward these emigres and toward 
the princes who were supporting them? This, in turn, involved 
the question of the attitude of France toward the emigres in 
general. To these questions Brissot had a ready answer, and 
on October 20, in a speech before the Assembly, set forth his 
views at length. Its most notable feature was its attempt to 
carry out to the fullest extent the liberty guaranteed by the 

^ For an extended consideration of the subject of Brissot's influence on for- 
eign affairs see H. A. Goetz-Bernstein, La Diplomatie de la Gironde, Jacques 
Pierre Brissot, Paris, 1912. 

2 Patriate Franqais, November 16, 1789. 

' The feudal relation of "the immediates" in Alsace was "ambiguous, 
obscure, and litigious." Sorel, L' Europe et la Revolution franqaise, ii, 78. 



228 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

declaration of rights and at the same time protect France from 
the dangers to which that liberty might give rise. The laws 
against the emigres, he maintained, had been confused with the 
laws against revolt. The declaration of rights proclaimed free- 
dom to every one to go wherever it seemed good unto him; 
from which it resulted that the citizens ought to be entirely 
free to emigrate. Then, coming down to more practical con- 
siderations, he drew example from the emigration of the Pro- 
testants under Louis XIV, and argued that if that powerful 
monarch, with his hordes of spies, priests, and soldiers, was not 
able to prevent emigration, it would be quite useless for France, 
under existing conditions, to attempt it. He therefore proposed 
that all emigres should be exhorted to return to France, but 
that in meting out punishment, a clear-cut distinction should 
be made between princes and public functionaries on the one 
hand, and ordinary citizens on the other. As for the foreign 
princes who were encouraging the emigres, here it was no longer 
a question of liberty, but one of self-defense; France must act 
with firmness and dispatch. Though these princes had imiver- 
sally opposed the Revolution, they were not to be feared, even 
though their intentions were hostile. But, he declared, they 
ought to be asked what their intentions really were, and if 
they refused to stop protecting the emigres or if they insisted 
on armed mediation, France must not wait for them, but must 
be the first to make the attack. 

This, Brissot's first speech of importance before the Legisla- 
tive Assembly, was a great success. He was vigorously ap- 
plauded and the applause continued as he made his way down 
from the tribune till he reached his seat.^ Outside of the 
Assembly it was received in quite different ways by different 
factions of the press. According to the Journal de la cour et de 
la ville, it was "a ridiculous harangue and consequently ob- 
tained the honor of being printed." " We will not speak further 
of it," added the same journal, "except to say that the consti- 
tution had already deprived le sieur Brissot of his surname de 
1 Moniteur, October 22, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 229 

Varville [sic]. This speech ought surely to make him lose the 
first three letters of the name which are left." ^ Les Revolutions 
de France et de Brabant, on the other hand, spoke of it as a 
superb speech and his draft of a decree as cutting the evil at 
the root. 2 

After a discussion of several weeks, a decree was finally 
passed, November 9, which, while modifying somewhat his 
proposal, accepted the distinction between classes which he 
laid down, severe penalties for flight being imposed only upon 
princes and public functionaries, and upon those bearing arms 
against France.* 

While the king still had this decree under advisement, Bris- 
sot, on November 15, informed the Assembly that the commit- 
tee was ready to report upon the action to be taken with regard 
to the foreign powers who had aided fugitives, and asked that 
the matter be placed on the calendar for early discussion.^ The 
subject did not, however, receive the prompt attention Brissot 
wished, and when the report was presented it was by Brissot's 
more conservative colleague, Koch,^ Although admitting that 
the German princes of the empire were in the wrong in harboring 
and protecting the emigres, Koch showed his moderation by 
suggesting that it was not improbable that firm and immediate 
action might be successful in averting war. There was no need 
to despair, he maintained, of making those German princes 
understand that it was neither to their interest nor to their 
glory to intrigue with a few fugitives. To bring these princes 
to a realization of their duty to a neighboring nation and to the 
empire was by no means impossible. Again, on November 29, 
he spoke in the same tone, and while accepting the substance 
of a motion of Daverhoult's to the effect that a committee of 
twenty-four be appointed to request the king to communicate 
with the German princes, asking them to state their intentions, 
he objected to that part of the motion which limited to two 

1 Number of October 22, 1791. ' No. 98. 

' Moniteur, November 10, 1791. 

4 lUd., November 16, 1791. b /Jid., November 23, 1791. 



230 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

weeks the time within which the princes should be required to 
dismiss the emigres. Such a demand, he insisted, was unreason- 
able and it savored too much of an ultimatum. More time 
should be given the princes.^ 

The conciliatory tone of Koch's speech was very different from 
the warlike and immoderate tone of Isnard's reply. "Let us 
say to Europe," he cried, "that if the French people draw the 
sword they will cast the scabbard behind them, and that they 
will sheathe the sword again only when they return crowned 
with the laurels of victory; and that if, in spite of their might 
and courage, they should be vanquished in the defense of lib- 
erty, their enemies will reign only over corpses. Let us say to 
Europe if the cabinets of foreign courts excite a war of kings 
against peoples we will excite a war of peoples against kings." ^ 
This language was not exactly calculated to calm the feelings 
of the kings in question, and, as the Patriate Frangais remarked, 
was indeed " the sword suspended over the head of Damocles." ' 
It is to be observed, however, that it is the language of which 
the Patriate Frangais approved, and of which it showed its 
approval by noticing at some length the speech of Isnard, while 
it had not a word to say of that of Koch. But in spite of the 
eloquence of Isnard, Koch's arguments prevailed and Daver- 
hoult's motion was amended so as to omit the fixed limit within 
which the princes must reply. As passed, it simply provided 
that the king be requested to make evident by all proper means 
to the princes along the Rhine the absolute necessity of with- 
drawing all assistance from the French emigres.* 

Meanwhile, the king had vetoed the decree against the 
emigres, a step which Brissot did not hesitate to denounce in 
severe terms. "The veto put by the king upon the decree 
against the emigres" he declared, "is contrary to the spirit of 
the constitution, because, in the first place, it was demanded 
and sanctioned by public opinion and because the king has- 
tened to give his veto without awaiting the expiration of the 

^ Moniteur, November 30, 1791. * Ihid., December 1, 1791. 

' Patriote Frangais, November 30, 1791. ^ Moniteur, December 1, 1791, 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 231 

time allowed him by the constitution in which to consult public 
opinion." ^ 

The general discussion of the subject of the Smigres now gave 
place for a moment to the discussion of a special case. It was a 
question of action against Cardinal de Rohan, who was charged 
with complicity in the plot to deliver Strasbourg to the emigres. 
Again the Patriote Frangais supported the radical side, repre- 
sented in this case by Ruhl, and declared that it was their right 
and their duty to present a decree against the cardinal as a 
French rebel. ^ Koch in reply reminded the Assembly that since 
Cardinal de Rohan, by abandoning his domicile in France, had 
lost his status as a French citizen, they could not indict him 
without exposing themselves uselessly to the danger of arousing 
the empire. Koch thus succeeded in checking the zeal of the 
Assembly. 

With such an appeal to the fear of war Brissot was not in 
sympathy. For some time he had maintained that the possi- 
bility of war was no cause for alarm; if France were timorous 
the example of America might well give her courage. " What 
soldiers of despotism," he cried, "can for any length of time 
withstand the soldiers of liberty ! The soldiers of tyrants are 
after pay, they have little fidelity, and desert on the first occa- 
sion. The soldier of liberty fears neither fatigue, danger, nor 
hunger — he runs, he flies at the cry of liberty, while despotism 
is scarcely taking a few tottering steps. . . . Oh, you who doubt 
the prodigious and supernatural effects which the love of liberty 
is able to inspire in men, think what the Americans did to gain 
their independence ! Think, for example, how Dr. Warren, who 
had never handled a musket, defended Bunker Hill with a 
handful of Americans, badly armed and badly disciplined ! . . . 
Follow General Washington making head with three or four 
thousand peasants against thirty thousand Englishmen! " ^ 

* Patriote Frangais, December 12, 1791. 

* Ibid., December 17, 1791; and Moniteur, December 18, 1791. 

^ Discours sur la question de savoir si le roi pent HrejugS, July 10, 1791. See 
Aulard, Les Jacobins, ii, 619-20. 



232 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

But Brissot not only maintained that war was not to be 
feared, but that France should take the initiative.' There were 
many who argued with him that the equivocal attitude of the 
German princes in regard to the emigres and their openly ex- 
pressed sympathy with the anti-revolutionary party in France 
ought not to be tolerated. Yet a large section, both of the 
Assembly and of the Jacobin Club, held that the trouble could 
be settled by negotiation and diplomacy; that France was not 
ready for war, and that to drag her into a war for which she 
was not prepared was sheer folly. Between the war and the 
anti-war factions, led respectively by Brissot and Robespierre, 
a prolonged struggle now began. ^ It was an uneven contest. 
The traditional and long-continued enmity toward Austria, 
which in the minds of many Frenchmen the treaty of 1756 had 
formally but not really ended, gave to Brissot a decided advan- 
tage.^ 

The personal contest with Robespierre was carried on at the 
Jacobin Club, where Brissot was just at the height of his popu- 
larity.^ The combat began on December 16, when Brissot in 
one of his longest and most eloquent speeches advocated imme- 
diate war. He began by declaring that, for a people who had 

1 Moniteur, October 22, 1791. 

^ Their previous relations had not been unfriendly. Brissot had been in 
sympathy with Robespierre's democracy and especially with his opposition to 
the repeal of the decree of May 15, but Robespierre had been much less inclined 
toward republicanism than Brissot. 

' Glagau, Diefranzosische Legislative und der Ursprung der Revolutionskriege, 
1791-92, p. 87. 

* His popularity seems to date from his speech on the dethronement of the 
king (see pp. 175-176). The Club watched with keen interest his struggle for 
election to the Assembly and received the news of his success with great de- 
light. Aulard, Les Jacobins, iii, 128, 135. His first appearance at the Jacobin 
Club after his election was greeted with enthusiastic applause, and in response 
he made a brief but telling speech, in which he told the Jacobins that he knew 
what they wanted was deeds not words, and assured them that they would 
always find him at the tribune of the National Assembly under the flag of 
liberty. A few days later he was elected president of the Club. See Aulard, 
Les Jacobins, iii, 195. The exact date of his election is not given, nor is the 
date of his retirement. He is mentioned as president October 3, and his retire- 
ment could not have been later than October 19. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 233 

just acquired their liberty after a dozen centuries of slavery, 
war was necessary in order to establish that liberty on a firm 
basis, in order to test it, to discover whether people were worthy 
of it. It was necessary, moreover, in order to purge away the 
vices of despotism and to get rid of men who might still be a 
source of corruption. He then went on to argue that France 
had already had sufficient provocation; that if she did not 
make the attack, other nations would think her weak and 
would perpetrate further outrages; that the war would not 
injure commerce, and that it was the very best means of strik- 
ing at a single blow the very center of the revolutionary 
movement, "the criminals at Coblenz." Finally, he declared 
that there was not the slightest danger that the king could 
make use of the army to recover his former crown. The day 
had gone by when the soldiers would lend themselves to any 
such dishonor. At every step in the argument Brissot cited 
American example which he seemed to think conclusive. 
America has passed safely through the crucible of war, he 
argued, why should not France? ^ 

At the same time that Brissot was arguing at the Jacobin 
Club for war, the Patriote Frangais was also clamoring for it. 
" War ! War ! Such is the cry of all French patriots," it declared ; 
" such is the desire of all the friends of liberty scattered all over 
Europe, who are only awaiting that happy diversion in order 
to attack and overthrow their tyrants. It is that expiatory war 
which is to renew the face of the world and plant the standard 
of liberty upon the palaces of kings, upon the seraglios of sul- 
tans, upon the chateaux of petty feudal tyrants and upon the 
temples of popes and muftis." ^ 

Meanwhile, the war question entered a new phase. The king 
had called Narbonne to the ministry of war and the latter had 
instigated a vigorous war policy. This was like stealing their 

^ Discours sur la necessity de declarer la guerre. 

2 Patriote Frangais, December 17, 1791. The immediate direction of the 
Patriote Frangais at this period, it will be remembered, had been abandoned by 
Brissot in order that he might devote himself more entirely to the work of a 
legislator, but there is no doubt that it continued to represent his sentiments. 



234 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

powder and was decidedly disconcerting to Brissot and his 
friends. Brissot had declared the center of the counter-revolu- 
tion to be the camp of the emigres at Coblenz, and, by his cen- 
sure of the king for leniency toward the emigres, had pretty 
plainly insinuated his connection with the counter-revolution 
and the anti-war faction. Now to find the king appearing as 
the champion of war decidedly weakened his arguments. This 
was a situation of which the opponents of war were not slow to 
take advantage. On December 18, Robespierre made a speech 
on the subject at the Jacobin Club, in which he pointed out 
that as the ministry desired war, to bring it about would only 
be playing into their hands. "War," he declared, "is always 
the first desire of a powerful government which desires to 
increase its power. I need not say that it is during war that the 
ministry succeeds in exhausting the people and wasting the 
revenues; that it covers its depredations and its sins with an 
impenetrable veil. I will not speak to you of what touches most 
directly the heart of our interests. It is during war that the 
executive power displays the most dangerous energy; that it 
exercises a kind of dictatorship which only serves to frighten 
liberty; it is during war that people neglect their civil and polit- 
ical rights, and occupy themselves only with foreign affairs; it is 
during war that they turn their attention from their legislators 
and magistrates and attach all their interests and hopes to 
their generals and ministers." ^ 

The answer of the Patriate Frangais to this trenchant argu- 
ment was that the court only made a pretense of desiring war, 
but in reality it did not desire it at all, as was evident from the 
way in which it had allowed the counter-revolution to grow and 
extend.^ The fact that it had not ceased to protect the enemies 
of the Revolution within was good reason for suspecting that it 
might have some understanding with the enemies without.* 

Inspired by this idea the demands for war continued. Brissot 

* Discours de Maximilien Robespierre, December 18, 1791. 

' Reference to the vetoes of the decrees against the imigr&s and priests. 

8 Patriote Frangais, December 20, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 235 

was well supported. On the same day on which Robespierre 
made his second speech at the Jacobin Club, December 18, 
Roederer had argued for war, especially on the ground of self- 
defense, and in the Assembly the cause was now taken up by 
Louvet and Gensonne, who even exceeded Brissot himself in 
the vehemence of their demands. "We shall ask you for a 
scourge, terrible but indispensable," cried Louvet. "We shall 
ask for war. War! And instantly let France rise in arms! . . . 
With the swiftness of lightning let thousands of our citizen 
soldiers precipitate themselves upon the domains of feudalism. 
Let them stop only where servitude ends; let the palace be sur- 
rounded by bayonets; let the declaration of rights be deposited 
in the cottage. Let man everywhere, educated and delivered 
from oppression, regain the feeling of his early dignity, let the 
human race arise and breathe." ^ But in order that these some- 
what extensive aims might be realized, money was necessary, 
and the Assembly was speedily brought down from the clouds 
to consider this practical necessity by a request of Narbonne 
for twenty millions. Of the announcement that Narbonne was 
to be made minister of war, the Patriate Frangais had spoken 
with anything but enthusiasm, and had remarked, when he 
took the oath of fidelity to the king and the constitution, that 
it was to be hoped that it was not an empty form.^ But now 
that Narbonne was pursuing an active war policy, the Brisso- 
tins, although they were not altogether in sympathy with him, 
came to a partial agreement at least as far as a common deter- 
mination to seek alliance with England and Prussia ^ and to 
urge a vigorous war policy against Austria. To carry out this 
purpose they now supported his demand for money .^ Accord- 
ingly, on December 26, Brissot explained the action of the 
committees on the subject and Gensonn^ presented the report. 
There was no longer a middle ground between liberty and slav- 
ery, Gensonne declared. And, in closing his speech, he pro- 
claimed with almost the ardor of Isnard: "The common enemy 

^ Moniteur, December 27, 1791. * Patriate Franqais, November 8, 1791. 
» See p. 250. * Glagau, 78-85. 



236 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

is at the gates, a general assault threatens us. Why do we dis- 
pute? Why do we fight each other? . . . Let us run to the 
breach to defend our ramparts or to be buried under the 
ruins." ^ The appeal was efiFective, for the Assembly voted 
the twenty millions unanimously. 

This enthusiasm Brissot did not allow to cool, and a few days 
later made another speech of most belligerent temper. In spite 
of the fact that the king was now favoring a warlike attitude, 
Brissot did not hesitate to cast suspicion on the sincerity of his 
intentions. "You passed a decree against the rebels," he re- 
minded the Assembly ; " the king's veto made it of no efiFect. . . . 
The enemies of the Revolution have continued their threats 
and their gatherings; the executive power has continued its 
indulgence." And even when the king did take active steps, 
Brissot continued, he showed that he did not realize what was 
fitting a constitutional king, by announcing to the Elector of 
Treves that he would regard him as an enemy instead of saying 
that the nation wovdd regard him as an enemy. But, granted 
that the motive of the king might be open to suspicion, that 
was no reason for not declaring war. As for possible danger, 
Brissot was most optimistic and maintained that, although 
foreign nations were making warlike preparations, they were 
not to be feared. The English people, he declared, if not the 
English government, were in sympathy with the Revolution; 
Austria was torn by internal dissensions, Germany was really 
peaceable, Sweden was poor, Russia was too far away, Poland 
was their friend. Moreover, war was necessary for honor's 
sake, for external safety, for internal tranquillity; in order to 
establish the finances and public credit of France; in order 
to put an end to terror, treason, and anarchy. War was actually 
a national benefit, and the only calamity to be feared was not 
to have war. He then spoke of the diplomatic transactions, and 
presented the draft of a decree which included a notification 
to foreign powers that any help given to French emigres would 
be regarded as an act of hostility; a demand upon the emperor 
^ Moniteur, December 28, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 237 

that he not only use his good offices with the German princes, 
but also that he send troops into Brabant to prevent all gather- 
ings of rebels; and the recall of the representatives of France 
from the courts of Stockholm, St. Petersburg, and Rome. ^ The 
whole speech showed an utter disregard of diplomatic usage, 
and its entire argument may be summed up in the phrase which 
Brissot used with telling effect: "The French Revolution has 
overturned all diplomacy." ^ 

Brissot was followed by Herault de S^chelles and by Condor- 
cet, who presented drafts of an address, setting forth in unmis- 
takable terms the attitude of the war party toward the Rhenish 
princes.^ In a burst of enthusiasm it was proposed to send this 
address, not only to the departments, but also to foreign pow- 
ers. Cooler heads fortimately perceived the rashness of such 
procedure and the clause concerning foreign powers was with- 
drawn; but the essential part of the motion — an indictment 
of the French princes who were in arms against France — was 
carried.* 

While these decrees were being discussed, Brissot resumed 
the conflict with Robespierre at the Jacobin Club and made 
another attempt to convince the society that war would not 
mean danger. As before, he drew his illustrations from America 
and considered actual conditions from a most optimistic and 
impractical point of view. There was no longer reason to fear 
the ministry, he argued, neither was there reason to fear the 
final outcome. If France was successful under despotism, what 
might not be expected from France now that she was free? As 
for the internal dangers of treason and loss of credit, treason 

1 Moniteur, December 30 and 31, 1791. 

2 In spite of his disdain for the diplomacy of the old regime, Brissot was not 
always consistent. When, for example, the rights of certain French citizens 
in Spain were involved, he was the first to make loud complaint that the 
Facte de Famille — that is to say, the defensive alhance which had taken the 
place of the original compact — had been violated. But when, a few weeks 
later, it was pointed out that France in tiu-n owed something to foreign powers, 
he was as swift to denounce that same Facte de Famille as "impolitic, danger- 
ous, and unconstitutional." Moniteur, January 30, 1792. 

3 Moniteur, December 31, 1791. * Ibid., January 2, 1792. 



238 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

was really to be desired as a means of getting rid of poison, 
and the prosperity of the finances depended on their putting 
down the rebels. Moreover, they would receive a warm welcome 
from the oppressed peoples against whose rulers they were con- 
tending. Finally, heroes would arise in France as in America, 
and if America, which was far worse ofiE than France, was victo- 
rious, why should France too not win victory? ^ 

This argument was in turn answered by Robespierre, who, 
in an admirable speech, very skillfully met the fallacies of 
Brissot's reasoning. He began by admitting that sentiment 
and emotion were on the side of war, and that to argue against 
it was to support an unpopular cause. "But," he said, — and 
this was the basis of his argument, — "reason is against it. 
Brissot's, idea is beautiful, theoretically, but are we so sure of 
success? It is admitted that war is desired by the emigres, the 
ministry, and the intriguers of the court, and all these factions 
constitute too dangerous and subtle a menace to be overlooked. 
America's example, as an argument for our success, is worthless, 
because the circumstances are different; and as for the state- 
ment that we will find a ready response among the peoples of 
the countries against which we fight, it is well to remember that 
people do not change their customs easily and that no one loves 
armed missionaries. The thing for us to do," he concluded, "is 
to set our own affairs in order and to acquire liberty for our- 
selves before offering it to others." ^ 

A few days later, Louvet, supporting Brissot, replied to these 
arguments,^ and on January 11 Robespierre spoke again.* In 
spite of Robespierre's efforts, Brissot won a signal, if temporary, 
victory, for the society voted to send to the affiliated clubs a 
circular letter prepared by the correspondence committee of the 

1 Second discours de J. P. Brissot . . . sur la nScessitS de faire la guerre. 
December 30, 1791 . See also Aulard, Les Jacobins, iii, 303. 

2 Discours de Maximilien Robespierre sur la guerre. January 2, 1792. Aulard, 
Les Jacobins, m, 309. 

3 Discours de Jean-Baptiste Louvet sur la guerre, January 9, 1792. Aulard, 
Les Jacobins, iii, 317. 

* Ibid., m, 318. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 239 

Jacobins, in which the arguments in favor of war were set forth 
and certain newspapers, including the Patriote Franqais, were 
recommended as patriotic. This was certainly equivalent to an 
approval of war, for the Patriote Frangais was belligerency 
itself, reporting at length speeches in favor of war and casting 
contempt on all arguments against it. 

Meanwhile, the discussion in the Assembly shifted from the 
Emigres and their protectors, the princes, to the emperor, to 
whom, as head of the empire, the princes appealed. On January 
14, Gensonne, in the name of the diplomatic committee, pre- 
sented a report on the conduct to be pursued toward the 
emperor. The report declared that, inasmuch as Austria had 
turned the treaty of 1756 to her own profit, and since the 
emperor had sanctioned the encouragement of the emigres by 
the Elector of Treves, and had himself been responsible for the 
declaration of Pilnitz and the Padua circular, the ministers 
should be required to demand an explanation from him before 
February 10, and meanwhile begin preparations for war.^ This 
report Brissot characterized as "remarkable for its wisdom and 
firmness." But to the moderate Koch it seemed most unwise, 
and while not censuring the war party directly, he stoutly main- 
tained that there was ground for believing that both the em- 
peror and the Elector of Treves were inclined toward peace, 
and furthermore that they were disposed to concede all that 
the French nation could in justice demand. ^ 

Brissot, however, would have none of such conciliatory sug- 
gestions. Even the proposal of Gensonne, that the emperor be 
asked for an immediate explanation of his conduct, seemed to 
him too mild. To ask for an explanation, he declared, puts us 
at the mercy of the emperor. To demand satisfaction puts him 
at ours. " I will not say to the emperor, with your committee," 
he continued, "'Will you execute the treaty of 1756?' But I 

^ Moniteur, January 15, 1792. 

2 Ihid., January 18, 1792. See also Goetz-Bemstein, 72. The concessions 
of the emperor and of the Elector of Treves certainly gave ample ground 
for Koch's claims. 



240 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

will say to him, 'You have yourself violated the treaty of 1756. 
We, therefore, have the right to regard it as already broken.* 
I will not say with your committee, 'Will you engage not to 
attack France nor to assail its independence?' But I will say, 
' You have formed a league against France. I, therefore, have a 
right to fight you, and the attack is just and necessary.' Either 
the emperor wants the war or he does not want it," Brissot con- 
tinued. "If he wants it, it would be senseless not to forestall 
him; if he does not want it, he would be senseless not to fore- 
stall it by giving you, as soon as possible, the satisfaction which 
you have the right to expect." Then, turning to France, he 
demanded: " Can you fear this Austria whose people are already 
your friends, even though its government does hate you? Can 
you fear this cabinet of Vienna which Richelieu caused to 
tremble — Richelieu, who governed only slaves; from which 
Louis XIV took its most beautiful provinces; to which the 
timid Fleury himself dictated the laws? Should France, free, 
fear this cabinet?" ^ 

This stirring appeal to patriotic pride produced a strong 
impression, but there were at least a few who were not to be 
blinded to the dangers of war, and the next day Mathieu Dumas 
counseled prudence. The burden of his plea was that if war 
were indeed inevitable, it ought to be waged, but that it ought 
not, by rash measures, to be made inevitable. What little 
impression Dumas's warning may have produced was immedi- 
ately effaced by Vergniaud, who used all his eloquence to sup- 
port Brissot. "To arms! To arms!" he cried; "citizens, free 
men, defend your liberty, assure liberty to mankind. It seems 
to me," he declared, in closing his appeal, "as though the spirits 
of past generations were filling the place, in order to adjure you 
in the name of the evils which they suffered, to preserve future 
generations whose destinies are in your hands. Answer that 
prayer: be for the future a new providence; ally yourself with 
the Eternal Justice which protects the French people. Then, 
while deserving the title of benefactors of your coimtry, you 
1 Moniteur, January 19, 1792. 



A HUMANITARIAN 209 

edly suspected the good faith of the committee and attributed 
delay rather to design than to the cause alleged. He finally 
lost all patience, and on November 20 declared to the Assembly 
that if the committee did not make a report on the colonies, he 
would. ^ Already fuller information had come in. It was now 
known that the situation was desperate. What the planters 
had predicted had come to pass. A slave insurrection of un- 
speakable horror was in progress, and the island was being 
devastated with fire and rapine. 

Such was the condition of affairs in Santo Domingo when, on 
December 1, Brissot made his promised speech, one of his long- 
est and most eloquent efforts. He argued that the real cause 
of the trouble was the machinations of the disloyal whites, who 
had refused to obey the decree of May 15, and had actually 
disarmed the mulattoes. The accusation that the Amis des 
Noirs had in any way been instrumental in causing the insur- 
rection he hotly denied. "Produce a single scrap of evidence 
of correspondence between the society or its individual mem- 
bers and the colonies," was his challenge; "show me a single 
emissary to the colonies, and we will march to the scaffold." 
As for the remedy, he had no faith in the formal agreement of 
September 20. It was forced from the whites almost at the 
moment when the National Assembly was passing the law of 
September 24 which gave to the whites power to decide on the 
status of the mulattoes. If the whites had known this they 
would never have consented to the agreement, and now that 
they had despotic power legally in their hands, they would use 
it despotically and disavow the agreement. The one reasonable 
thing for the Assembly to do was to repeal the law of Septem- 
ber 24 and by its own action assure to the mulattoes their 
rights. To this end he proposed a series of radical measures. 
The most important were the arrest and trial before the high 
national court of the members of the general assembly of Santo 
Domingo, and of the governor, M. Blanchelande; the calling of 
a new colonial assembly without distinction of color and the 
^ Moniteur, November 21, 1791. 



210 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

sending to the islands of civil commissioners and troops.^ The 
Assembly evidently was not ready for such measm-es, but one 
thing was clear even to Brissot's opponents : troops were imper- 
atively needed in the island and at once. The task of Brissot 
and his friends was now to win the passage of a decree which 
would insm-e that the troops should not be used against the 
mulattoes. To this the colonists vehemently objected and the 
debates became tempestuous. In the struggle Brissot had 
the support of his Girondin friends in his main purpose, though 
they differed as to the means by which it was to be attained. 
Guadet and Vergniaud each had a different wording for the 
definitive clause of the decree; Vergniaud's, providing that the 
troops could be used only on the requisition of the civil com- 
missioners, was the more conciliatory; while Guadet's stated 
that the king should use the troops for the provisional main- 
tenance of the agreement made by the whites. This latter 
proposition aroused fierce debate; since, by dictating the action 
of the colonial assemblies it took away the freedom granted 
by the September law. The fundamental question of the status 
of the law was thus raised. It had been passed as an acte con- 
stitutionnel sur les colonies and the question was: Did it fall 
under that provision of the constitution which declared that 
the next two legislatures could not propose the change of any 
constitutional article? As a constitutional article had unfortu- 
nately not been defined, there was room for endless argument. 
The colonial committee declared that the law under discussion 
was to all intents and purposes a part of the constitution and 
so could not be changed, while Brissot stoutly maintained that 
it was not a part of the constitution and therefore could be 
changed.^ In spite of intense opposition, Brissot won a victory 
on the immediate question of the use of the troops which were 
to be sent to Santo Domingo, it being provided that they could 
be used only to put down the revolt of the negroes and not to 
the prejudice of the rights of the mulattoes, as established by 
the agreement entered into by the whites. 

1 Moniteur, December 2 and 4, 1791. ^ Ibid., December 8 and 9, 1791. 



A HUMANITARIAN 211 

But the definite settlement of the fundamental question of 
the status of the mulattoes, and the relation of the colonial 
assembly to it, was put off for some time. Finally, on March 21, 
Brissot demanded that the discussion of the subject be begun 
at once and be continued without interruption until it should 
be settled. He then made a lengthy speech, in which he reiter- 
ated his former assertion that the difficulty was due not to the 
decree of May 15, but to its non-enforcement; pictured in glow- 
ing colors the moderation and the patriotism of the mulattoes 
in the face of wrong and oppression; accused the colonial 
assembly of plotting for the independence of the colonies; and 
declared that the only just and adequate solution of the prob- 
lem was the revocation of the decree of September 24.^ These 
arguments were answered by Tarbe, of the colonial committee, 
who declared that the evidence on which Brissot based his 
charges against the colonial committee was ill founded, drew 
a lurid picture of the cruelty of the mulattoes, — a ghastly 
contrast to Brissot's presentation, — and vehemently opposed 
the revocation of the September decree. 

The question of the constitutional character of this decree 
was taken up by Gensonn^ and Guadet, both of whom argued 
against its constitutionality on the ground that by giving so 
much authority to the colonial assemblies it violated the indi- 
visible sovereignty of the people. ^ The further argument was 
adduced by Gensonne that it could not be considered constitu- 
tional, because it was passed after the constitution had been 
declared finished. After a stormy debate Girondin influence 
finally prevailed, and on March 24 Brissot and his friends won 
a decisive victory in the passage of a law which practically re- 
enacted that of May 15, by giving civil rights to the mulattoes. 

Brissot was fairly carried off his feet with delight at the suc- 
cess of this measure, and, in an editorial in the Patriote Frangais, 

^ Moniteur, March 22, 1792. 

^ Ibid., March 23 and 24. The Patriote FrauQais of March 23 said of 
Guadet's speech: " Sensibilite, inergie, logique, et plaisanterie, il a su fondre 
toutes les couleurs avec I'art le plus delicat." 



212 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

gave vent to a perfect paean of joy — an editorial which showed 
his absolute inability to understand that there were two sides 
to the question or to credit his adversaries with honest convic- 
tion and sincerity of motive. There was nothing left for them, 
he declared, but opprobrium, ineffaceable opprobrium. Their 
souls were hardened, ossified; they were dead to liberty and 
humanity. 

This decree which so moved Brissot was the last colonial 
legislation of importance during his career, but the spirit of his 
measures was followed out, two years later, by a decree abolish- 
ing slavery. The insurrection, meanwhile, was not permanently 
quelled, and under Toussaint I'Ouverture Santo Domingo prac- 
tically secured her independence. That the Amis des Noirs 
had any part in this subsequent legislation is not proved by 
any records known to the writer. The resum^ of the proceed- 
ings of the society, found at the Institute among the papers of 
Condorcet, stops with the meeting of June 8, 1790, but the 
existence of the society as late as July, 1792, is attested by the 
records of the English society. It is not unlikely that, after the 
victory of March, 1792, when other interests absorbed the time 
and attention of its leader, it abandoned further immediate 
efforts and became less and less active. 

The responsibility for the initiative of this colonial policy 
was universally laid at the door of the Amis des Noirs, and from 
the time when they opposed the admission to the Assembly of 
the deputies from Santo Domingo to the passing of the decree 
of March 24, 1792, accusations were heaped up against them. 
These accusations came from at least three sources: the com- 
mercial class, both in the colonies and in France, who declared 
that they would be ruined if the slave trade were destroyed; 
the planters, who, in addition to commercial ruin, feared the 
horrors of a negro insurrection; and the more conservative ele- 
ment in the Assembly, who, while they were not personally 
involved, foresaw the dangers which might result from too 
radical action.^ 

^ See, for example, a cut which appeared in the Actes des Apotres, vol. xi, no. 



A HUMANITARIAN 213 

The charges brought against the Amis des Noirs by these 
various enemies went all the way from a simple allegation that 
they had been guilty of bad judgment in trying to bring about 
the abolition of the slave trade and of slavery to the accusation 
that they had deliberately stirred up revolt for treasonable 
purposes. One of the most violent denounced the society as a 
sect which carried with it the destruction of all religions, of all 
forms of government. The majority of these attacks accused 
the society, at most, of bad judgment, and were based on the 
general argument that the colonies could not exist without the 
slave trade and that the result of its suppression would be 
weakness and poverty.^ "Such is the natural result," wrote 
Saint-Cyran, " of the ideas with which a multitude of lazy peo- 
ple, who know very little about our colonies and our commerce, 
are trying to buy celebrity at any price. We ought, no doubt, 
to consider these humanitarians as fanatics who are acting in 
good faith, although appearances are to the contrary." 2 

As might be expected, many of the attacks were directed 
especially against Brissot. He had at least twice held the office 
of president of the society of the Amis des Noirs, — in Febru- 
ary, 1789, and again in January, 1790; during a large part of 
1790 and in 1791 he filled the more important post of secretary 
and was known as the founder and most active member.^ He 
was accused of being from first to last the author of the trouble 
in the colonies and of having acted as the agent of the English 
government with the deliberate purpose of bringing about their 
ruin. Such charges, in various forms and in various degrees of 

S06v about January, 1792, representing in the background the city of Bordeaux 
and in the foreground Vulcan chained, a broken anchor, and a wrecked ship 
with this inscription: " Activity constitutionnelle du commerce de Bordeaux, cette 
estampe est dSdiSe a la Societe des Amis des Noirs et recommand&e particuliere- 
ment a Mm. [sic] Condorcet et Brissot." 

^ De Pons, writing to Barnave, Observations sur la situation politique de Saint- 
Domingue, November 27, 1790. 

2 Refutation du pro jet des Amis des Noirs sur la suppression de la traite des 
negres et sur V abolition de Vesclavage dans nos colonies, par M. de Saint-Cyran, 
1790. 

' See the signatures of the ofiBcers attached to various addresses of the 
society. 



214 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

intensity, were repeated again and again during the period 
when colonial affairs were under discussion and were brought 
up once more during the trial of the Girondins, both openly 
and anonymously.^ One anonymous writer, for example, de- 
nounced Brissot to this effect: He fled from home some years 
before and came to Paris, where he was shut up in a house of 
correction on account of many scandalous libels, of which he 
was recognized as the author. Forced to leave the kingdom, he 
embarked for New England as a cabin boy. By means of a 
certain amount of talent, especially a talent for intrigue, and 
his pleasing appearance and manners, he succeeded in making 
the acquaintance of some Frenchmen in New York who pro- 
vided for his support. They were all deceived. A blunderer 
by nature and vicious besides, he stirred up trouble, in which 
he compromised his friends. They made haste to get rid of 
him. No one would have anything to do with him, and he was 
forced to embark for England. In this wretched condition, to 
which he was reduced by his wickedness, without refuge, with- 
out support, he applied to the Revolutionary Club at London. 
They took him into their service in their plan of vengeance 
against France.^ 

These charges are manifestly so absiu*d as to need no refuta- 
tion. As for the charges against the society, it is to be remem- 
bered that in many cases they were made by persons interested; 
at the same time it is to be observed that in several instances, 
at least, they were made by men who had been in the colonies 
and knew whereof they spoke — as the Amis des Noirs did not. 
The accusation that they stirred up rebellion for treasonable 
purposes is certainly without real foundation, although in one 
case circumstances seemed to connect them directly with dis- 
order in the colonies. Og^ was affiliated with the society. 

^ See a paper found among the papers of the colonial committee [A.N. A. A. 
54, 1509], unsigned and undated. It consists of a long list of accusations — 
thirty-two counts in all — supported in almost every case by a citation from 
the Patriate Frangais. See Appendix C. 

^ Decouverte d'une conspiration contre les interits de France, without date or 
signature. Printed in Supplement aux proces-verbal de rAssemblee nationale, 
colonies, i, traite des negres, part ii. 



A HUMANITARIAN 215 

After his stay in Paris he went directly back to Santo Domingo 
and raised an insurrection. But even in this instance it can 
hardly be asserted that the society deliberately instigated rebel- 
lion, although they certainly sympathized with its ends. They 
also sympathized with all efforts for the ultimate abolition of 
slavery; but the charge that they were trying to bring it about 
immediately is without proof. 

At all events, their efforts to extend the principles of liberty 
and equality to the colonies were attended with disastrous 
results. The Amis des Noirs may not have been responsible for 
the consequences, but their principles were embodied in the 
decrees which had these deplorable results. The members of 
the society, and Brissot in particular, thought that they under- 
stood the subject, but they had not lived in the colonies and 
were really meddling in a matter that they knew nothing about. 
Robert-Dubayet put the matter very well when he declared 
th£,t "the experiences of all time teach us that there are mo- 
ments when it is not desirable to publish, much less to put into 
practice, political maxims of eternal truth, especially when the 
premature application of a principle means the ruin of many 
thousands of individuals." ^ This is practically what the Amis 
des Noirs had done under the leadership of Brissot. As a 
French politician of the time declared: "Our colonies became 
the prey of their humanity." ^ 

• Moniteur, March 24, 1792. 

2 Paganel, Essai historique, ii, 229. Paganel says: "Brissot se proposait de 
venger la nature et de retahlir dans ses droits la moitie de I'espece humaine. Que 
fit-il, en effet ? II assimila dans I'ordre politique et civil a tons les Frangais des 
hommes qui leur Stoient absolument dissemhlahles par les habitudes, leurs rrweurs, 
et la privation de toute lumiere; il deversa tout-a-coup dans Vharmonie sociale 
I'indSpendance sans regulateur et les passions sans f rein. . . . 

"La philosophie eut dans les premieres legislatures ses devots, et la liberte ses 
fanatiques. II n^est pas plus permis, disait Brissot, de composer avec les principes 
qu'avec les devoirs. Juges et parties, les blarws ne sauroient, sans crim,e et sans 
konte, proroger la servitude des noirs. 

"Ainsi Brissot et son parti opposoient la nature a Vinteret particulier, la raison 
d la violence, le droit au privilege, le perfectionnement de Vespece humaine a 
I'orgueil de la couleur, enfin au systeme colonial, le systeme eternel d'ordre et de 
justice fonde par le pere commun des hommes, ..." 



CHAPTER IX 

BRISSOT AS A MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 

Part I 

His Election and his Relation to the War Question ' 

A FEW days before it dissolved, the first National Assembly 
had declared that the one object of the Revolution was to give 
the French people a constitution, and that as the constitution 
was completed, the Revolution was ended. To those who be- 
lieved this declaration, the period of the Legislative Assembly 
furnished a complete disillusion. At its beginning France was a 
bourgeois monarchy at peace with all its neighbors; before its 
close she had entered upon a war which was to end only with the 
fall of Napoleon; and she had become in all but name a demo- 
cratic republic. In both these changes Brissot took an active 
part. He was influential in bringing about the overthrow of the 
monarchy, and for the war he, more than any other one man, 
was responsible. The period of the Legislative Assembly was 
indeed the most important epoch of his life and the time of his 
greatest influence. 

In spite of his avowed republicanism, he had no hesitation 
about accepting the position of deputy under the constitutional 
monarchy. On the contrary, he was eager for the opportunity 
to sit in the Legislative Assembly, and it would have been a 
keen disappointment to him if he had failed of election, as he 
had two years before to the States-General. Quite aside from 
his own personal interest, the approaching elections were to 
him a matter of the deepest concern. It was of vital impor- 
tance, he felt, that the right sort of men should be chosen, and 
in the Patriote Frangais of June 14 and 15 he gave his advice 
at length on the subject. Exclude former princes and members 
of the high nobility and the high clergy, he urged. Mistrust 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 217 

those men who have been connected with great houses, exclude 
not only those who have had pensions from the government, 
but also those who are holding public and lucrative places, of 
whatever nature, for it may be regarded as a sacred maxim that 
no one can fill two oflSces at a time. Mistrust bankers ; men who 
have belonged to the old parliamentary magistracy; men of 
letters, who have been the champions of the ministry; almost 
all academicians, men who have passed their lives in the midst 
of the great; and finally, both the men who are always preach- 
ing moderation and those who defend the cause of the people 
with frenzy. Barring out such men, the safest classes from which 
to choose are first of all political writers, and then in order 
doctors, lawyers, and business men. In making these recom- 
mendations, Brissot, while obviously sincere, was perhaps not 
altogether disinterested. 

His own chances were certainly better now than they had 
been at the opening of the States-General, partly because the 
self-denying ordinance, by making ineligible to the Legislative 
Assembly all members of the first Assembly, had removed from 
the field of competition many prominent men, who might 
otherwise have been his rivals; but chiefly because he had won 
for himself a considerable reputation as a municipal politician, 
leader of the Amis des Noirs, and most of all as editor of the 
Patriote Frangais. On the other hand, these very activities 
which had proclaimed him a partisan of an equality which 
extended even to the negro, and of a sovereignty of the people 
which would overthrow the king, had made him many enemies 
among the colonists, the aristocrats, and the royalists. It was 
not a question of "accepting" the position of deputy, but of 
fighting a long and arduous battle to gain it. 

The attack against him was led by royalist journals, such as 
the Actes des Apotres, the Journal de la cour et de la ville, the 
Ami du Roi, the Argus Patriote, the Babillard, and the Chant du 
Coq.^ While these papers could not be compared to the revo- 

^ " Le Chant du Coq semblait n'avoir 6tS crSS que pour mener une campagne 
acharnie contre Brissot." Charavay, L'Assemblee iledorale de Paris, 1791-92, 



218 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

lutionary journals for the weight and force of their arguments, 
in wit and abihty to make their antagonist ridiculous they were 
disconcertingly successful. Brissot's candidacy was no sooner 
announced than they began their fusillades. Among these 
attacks the most noted and the most effective was that of the 
Journal de la cour et de la ville. In the midst of the election it 
came out with this epigram : — 

Mons Bris . . . ressemble aufripon 
Qui, dans la crainte de la geole, 
Va partout criant : Au larron I 
Et pendant ce temps-la vous vole.^ 

The accusation of theft hinted at in these lines is said to have 
first been made by Theveneau de Morande, the editor of the 
Argus Patriote, who is held responsible for coining the word 
hrissoter as an equivalent for steal. ^ It was immediately seized 
upon by the royalist journals, who lost no time in putting it 
into circulation, as an equivalent for escroquer, to steal, nor did 
its use cease with Brissot's election. For example, the Journal 
de la cour et de la ville of September 25 made this edifying state- 
ment : " When Mr. Burke learned that it was sufficient to know 
how to hrissoter neatly in order to be chosen as deputy to the 
new legislatm-e, he said : ' I hope that Mr. Pitt will not continue 
to send the brissoteurs of London to Botany -Bay, since he can 
now settle them so well with our neighbors; those clever pick- 
pockets will find themselves at home there.' " Again a few days 
later the same journal, apropos of a theft, alluded to a brissote- 
ment that had been perpetrated upon an Englishman in one of 

Introduction, xxii. The editors of the Babillard were cited by Brissot before 
the courts. Their defense was that they had merely borrowed from Theveneau 
de Morande. At all events, the suit came to nothing. Bouchez et Roux, xii, 
15-17. 

1 Charavay, L'AssemblSe Uectorale de Paris, Introduction, xxii-xxv. 

2 No. 2, of September 17-18, p. 52. Claretie in his biography of Desmoulins 
(p. 180) credits him with coining the word in his Jean Pierre Brissot demasqut. 
But this pamphlet did not appear till February, 1792, and the word hrissoter 
was used in the Journal de la cour et de la ville of September 10, 1791 (Charavay, 
VAssemhlee Uectorale de Paris, 1791-92, Introduction, xxvii, note). Accord- 
ing to Beaulieu, Essais historiques, 47, it was Theveneau de Morande in the 
Argus who was responsible. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 219 

the chief gambling-halls of the Palais Royal. ^ According to 
Beaulieu, the use of the word became so common that even the 
children in the streets took it up. Instead of saying, " You have 
stolen my ball or my top," they would say, "You have hrissote 
my ball or my top." ^ The stigma involved clung to Brissot 
to the end of his days. 

Theveneau de Morande, mentioned above as the originator 
of this libel, was Brissot's most bitter and persistent enemy. 
It will be remembered that they had come to serious disagree- 
ment during Brissot's residence in London in 1783, when they 
both worked on the Courrier for Swinton,^ and that Morande 
had subsequently accused him of swindling Desforges, Brissot's 
partner, in the Lycee, in consequence of which Brissot had 
brought a suit against him which was still pending.^ Morande 
had now renewed his attacks. According to Madame Roland, he 
was one of three or four scribblers paid by Montmorin to run 
down Brissot, and had been called from London expressly for 
this purpose. At all events, whether on his own account or in 
the pay of others, he denounced Brissot unsparingly. Not con- 
tent with heaping up accusations in his journal, he now pub- 
lished them enlarged and embellished in pamphlet form, with 
the object of reaching a larger audience, and thus inflicting all 
possible damage. To these attacks Brissot replied by similar 
pamphlets and through the columns of the Patriote Frangais. 
Though waged for political reasons, the combat was not on 
questions of political policy but of personal conduct. Neither 
party scrupled to drag in the details of the private life of the 
other, and their mutual recriminations were far from edifying.^ 

' Journal de la cour et de la ville, October 12, 179] . The same paper made a 
wretched pun declaring that the name was really Tressot. It also declared that 
Brissot's schoolmates had sought the origin of his name in Greek roots and 
found it to be the future of the verb britho, that is to say, " Je suis sur le voie 
d'etre pendii.'' December 21, 1791. 

2 " Cette meckancete fit fortune. Les enfants, dans leurs jeux, ne disaient plus: 
' Tu m'a pris ou vole ma boule ou ma toupie,' mais ' Tu m'a hrissote ma toupie, 
tu m'as hrissote ma boule.' " Beaulieu, ii, 47. 

» See p. 24. * See p. 28. 

^ (a) Replique de Charles ThSveneau Morande a Jacques Pierre Brissot sur 



220 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Morande's accusations were not so well founded as Brissot's, 
but he was extremely skillful in making the worse appear the 
better reason, and pertinacious in supporting his accusations 
by plausible arguments and by suppositions which seemed to 
the uninitiated additional proof. He raked up every unfortu- 
nate accident or unhappy circumstance of Brissot's past life 
and adroitly interpreted them to Brissot's disadvantage, pre- 
senting even the most innocent facts in such dark and damning 
colors that Brissot himself might well have doubted his own 
integrity.^ He dwelt at length on the fact that Brissot was of 
insignificant birth, the son of an eating-house keeper, and when 
Brissot retorted that Demosthenes was the son of a blacksmith, 
Massillon of a shoemaker, and Diderot of a cutler, ^ Morande 
declared that he had almost died of laughter at the audacity 
or rather the simplicity of the comparison. The addition of 
de Warville, which Brissot had made to his name before leaving 
Chartres, Morande alleged as evidence of aristocratic tenden- 
cies,^ and Brissot's efforts in behalf of the negro as evidence 
that he was in secret and treasonable collusion with England 
for the purpose of ruining French commerce and destroying the 
French colonies.* Morande declared further that Brissot had 
"forgotten" for six months to restore to the treasury of the 

les erreuTS, les oublis, les infMliUs et les calomnies de sa rSponse. August 26, 
1791. The title evidently makes allusion to the earlier phase of the contest 
which had been carried on in the respective newspapers of Morande and 
Brissot. 

(b) Lettre aux Slecieurs du department de Paris sur Jacques Pierre Brissot, 
par Charles Theveneau Morande. September 3, 1791. 

(c) Supplement au No. 25 de V Argus Patriote. Reponse au dernier mot de 
J. P. Brissot et a tous les petits mots de ses camarades. September 6, 1791. 

^ (a) Reponse de Jacques Pierre Brissot a tons les libellistes, qui out attaqui et 
attaquent sa vie passee. August 10, 1791. 

(6) Aux electeurs du d^partement de Paris. August 26, 1791. 
(c) Replique de J. P. Brissot a Charles Thheneau Morande. August 30, 
1791. 

^ Reponse de Jacques Pierre Brissot, 3. A keener sense of humor would have 
prevented Brissot from making such a comparison. It was very characteristic 
that he did not realize how this would sound. 

' Replique de Charles Thiveneau Morande, 47-48. 

* Lettre aux Electeurs, 19-20. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 221 

district of the Filles-Saint-Thomas five hundred and eighty 
livres with which he had been entrusted as president of the 
district,^ and finally, returning to his earlier charges, he dwelt 
at length on the accusation that Brissot had had part in the 
distribution of the Diable dans un henitier,^ and that he had 
swindled his partner Desforges out of fifteen thousand livres.^ 
These charges were supported by insufficient evidence. It 
is true that he habitually signed himself Brissot de Warville, and 
even became known as Monsieur de Warville,'^ but that this 
was an evidence of aristocratic tendencies Brissot emphatically 
denied. He added the de Warville, he declared, in early life, 
simply in order to distinguish himself from his brothers, and 
then having published works under that name, it seemed better 
to keep it. It is to be remembered, moreover, that Brissot was 
not the only revolutionist who bore a title without being of the 
nobility or having the least desire to be.^ But although it 
showed a little human weakness, and certainly gave a handle to 
unfriendly criticism, it was really no proof of opposition to the 
democratic principles of the Revolution.® As for the charge 
that he was sold to England, an accusation of like venality was 
made, at one time or another, against almost every public man 
in France. The cry was raised that Mirabeau was sold to the 
court, Condorcet to the king, Danton to the foreigner, but, 
lacking unquestionable proof, such charges may be dismissed 
as unworthy of consideration. The accusation that Brissot 
kept back money belonging to his district falls to the ground, 
since he was able to produce a receipt for the money. ^ On the 
last two charges, that of complicity in the authorship of the 
Diable dans un benitier and of having swindled Desforges, Bris- 
sot, as has already been seen, was not able to clear himself so 

1 See Brissot, Replique, 26. « See p. 30. ' See p. 28. 

* He was known as De Warville in America. See letters addressed to him by 
Americans, in Craigie Papers, American Antiquarian Society, and Scioto 
Papers, in New York Historical Society. 

* Brissot, Reponse a tous les lihellistes, 5. 

* Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel; Charlotte Corday ei lea Girondins, n, 244. 
^ Replique de Brissot, 26. 



222 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

completely; ^ but at least if evidence of his perfect innocence is 
lacking, so is evidence of his guilt. It is a case of " not proved." 

But if Morande's facts were doubtful, his skill in presenting 
them was great. With a deft touch and a clever turn he had 
brought out the weak points in Brissot's career. He showed 
that Brissot, if not himself a writer of libels, had been closely 
connected with people who did write them, pointed out Bris- 
sot's failures as a man of letters, and held up to ridicule his 
impracticable schemes. ^ The very bitterness of the attack was, 
on the other hand, a tribute to Brissot's position, for had he 
not been a man of prominence he would not have been so vigor- 
ously opposed. 

Brissot's cause was meanwhile supported by his friends, his 
section, and his native city. In answer to the allegations of the 
Babillard, borrowed from Morande, that he had not accounted 
for money belonging to his district, certain important members 
of the section of the Bibliotheque posted two certificates which 
showed that the money had been duly paid,^ and the citizens 
of Chartres, Brissot's native place, sent to the electors of Paris 
an address in which they asserted their belief in his innocence 
and denounced the accusations made against him as atrocious 
calumnies.^ The district of Lyons also sent an ardent address 
in his behalf.^ Brissot himself, in addition to his defense 
against specific charges, wrote an exhortation to the electors 
which, while general in its terms, was really an appeal for per- 
sonal support. The fate of the constitution, he reminded them, 
depended in large part on the future legislature. Its members 
should, therefore, be chosen with the utmost care. Calumnies 
against the candidates instead of being lightly accepted should 

1 See pp. 28, 30. ^ RSplique de Brissot, 39, 51. 

' Bouchez et Roux, xii, 15-17. Whereupon the Babillard, in another issue, 
questioned the worth of these certi6cates and added that Brissot had taken the 
sum twice, but this seems hardly probable. 

^ Charavay, L'Assemblee ilectorale de Paris, 1791-92, pp. 202-03. The insti- 
gators of this letter were the members of the local Jacobin Club. Their support 
of Brissot may, therefore, have been due more to his popularity with the 
Jacobin Club at Paris than to the fact that he was a native of Chartres. 

^ Archives Rationales, W- 11. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 223 

be carefully sifted. Proved patriotism, courage, good judgment, 
and uprightness were the indispensable requisites.^ 

Despite all the efforts in his behalf, it looked for some time 
as though Brissot's opponents were going to be successful in 
keeping him out of the Legislative Assembly. Proposed again 
and again in the Electoral Assembly of Paris he was again and 
again defeated, and it was only after repeated attempts that on 
September 14 he was finally elected twelfth deputy from Paris 
out of twenty -four. 2 His election under such circumstances 
was a decided victory for the advanced party, and was hailed 
with great rejoicing by the citizens of Chartres, by the Jacobin 
Club of Paris, by various local Jacobin clubs, ^ by the radical 
press,* and by his personal friends. Madame Roland had been 
among those who had followed the course of the elections with 
the deepest interest. She was distressed at his defeats,^ but 
greatly delighted at his ultimate success. Her hope for him was 
that he might be able to do the good that he longed to do.® 

The Assembly was composed, for the most part, of young 
men, and, as a result of the self-denying ordinance passed by 
the Constituent Assembly, of inexperienced men. It thus 
offered an unusual opportunity to Brissot, one of the few 
members who had already made a name for himself. To a man 
whose most absorbing interest for years had been political 
reform, now to have a share in actual legislation was both a 
reward for past work and a stimulus to further effort. And he 
threw himself into his new task with all his heart and soul. He 

^ Patriote Franqais, August 23, 1791. 

* Charavay, L'Assemblee Slectorale de Paris, 1791-92, pp. 133-227. See 
also Appendix D. 

' Lettres de felicitation des SoeiStSs des Amis de la Constitution de V Yonne 
et de Saint-Denis, et de plusieurs Slecteurs du district de Lyon, four le choix de 
Brissot, 19, 20, 28 sepfembre, 1791. Originaux signi:s A.N. B^ 11. 

* Charavay, ubi sup.. Int., xxix. 

^ Madame Roland to Bangal, September 3 : " Brissot est terriblement baloitS; 
s'il ne passe pas aujourd'hui; je tremble pour lui." Lettres, ii, 368. 

® Ibid., n, 384. "La nomination de Brissot fut cSlSbrie par toute la presse pa- 
triate. C'itait le premier candidal de la fraction la plus avancee de VAssembUe 
qui rSunit la majorite." Charavay, ubi sup.. Int., xxix. 



224 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

gave up for the time active participation in the editing of his 
journal, "in order that he might devote himself more fully to 
the important functions to which the choice of his fellow citi- 
zens called him." 

His candidacy had been well supported by the radical press. 
The only democratic journalist who expressed doubt as to his 
political policy was Marat, who was unable to forget or to for- 
give Brissot's support of Lafayette; and with his usual penetra- 
tion, he pointed out the weakness in Brissot's position. Brissot, 
he declared, by trying to conciliate incompatible interests, had 
displeased both parties; clear-sighted patriots lacked confidence 
in him, while the enemies of the country distrusted him.^ Bris- 
sot's opposition to the constitution and outspoken admiration 
for a republic, followed by his acceptance of the constitution, 
certainly did give ground for suspicion, on the part both of the 
conservatives and of the radicals. And when, on the opening 
of the Legislative Assembly, he took the oath to the constitu- 
tion, the royalist journals indulged in sarcastic comment at his 
expense. L'Ami du Roi, for example, in referring to the oath 
taken by the deputies, declared that "among the orators of 
that pious opera the one who made the greatest sensation was 
M. Brissot, who was received with exaggerated and ironic 
applause. People supposed that it would cost that famous 
republican much effort to swear fidelitS to the king; but it must 
be admitted that M. Brissot carried it off with a very good 
grace. The pleasure of seeing himself . . . seated upon one 
of the national thrones made him swallow the pill of the oath 
without a grimace." ^ 

The possible effect of this inconsistency Brissot had not failed 
to appreciate, and in an address to the Electoral Assembly 
just after his election, he had attempted to set himself right. " I 
have been pictured to you as an enemy to the constitution," 
he declared. "Far from me that horrible character. To wish 
to improve it while it was still unfinished, was that to be an 

* VAmi du pewple, September XI, 1791. 

' L'Ami du Roi, October 6, 1791. Quoted in Bouchez et Roux, xn, 51. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 225 

enemy of the constitution? Finished, entire, to-day it com- 
mands respect, and its worship is in my heart; it is in the heart 
of all patriots." ^ 

But, in this same address, in speaking of the difficulties with 
which the legislature would have to contend, he declared that 
the executive power was without energy and without confi- 
dence, — a statement, which, while it might be taken to refer 
to the ministry, might at the same time be suspected of imply- 
ing distrust of the king himself, and of containing the germ of 
opposition to the whole executive department as provided for 
in the constitution. The royalist journals were fundamentally 
right. The above declaration as to his devotion to the consti- 
tution, while not untrue, was not the whole truth. Brissot's 
ardor was for the new constitution only so far as it represented 
a victory over the old regime; for it, as a finished and unchange- 
able form of government, his ardor was much less; and in the 
new legislature he took his seat, not with the right, which 
wanted to maintain the constitution, the whole constitution, 
and the constitution at any cost; but with the left, which, 
while not openly opposing the constitution, by no means ac- 
cepted it as the climax of the Revolution and which was not in 
the least inclined to regard the Revolution as finished. It was 
with the deputies from the Gironde, Vergniaud, Gensonne, and 
Guadet, who formed the nucleus of that group afterward to be 
known as the Girondifis, with whom he especially allied himself. 
According to Paganel, his motive in connecting himself with 
them was that he might have their support in his contest in 
behalf of the mulattoes.^ At all events, his opinions soon ac- 
quired much weight with them, and he became so important 
and influential a member of the Assembly that his political 
adherents, both within the Assembly and without, were known 
as Brissotins. As has been said, this was the period of his great- 
est influence. This influence was due in part to his numerous 
speeches before the Assembly. He always spoke with clearness 

* Patriote Franqais, September 17, 1791, 

* Paganel, Esaai historique, ii, 228. 



226 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

and some force, and occasionally with eloquence, but he was 
not a great orator. His real strength lay in the tremendous 
earnestness with which he worked, in his imttiring perseverance, 
and in his zeal in organizing and directing affairs outside as 
well as in the Assembly itself.^ 

The first business of the Assembly was to provide the neces- 
sary machinery for work, and it had hardly begun the task 
when Brissot, with his usual readiness, came forward with a 
plan for the organization of committees; but, although he made 
every effort to be heard, he could not obtain the floor. Un- 
daunted by this failure, he gave the speech at the Jacobin Club 
and had it printed. It was a clear and forcible argument in 
favor of having as few committees as possible. Committees 
were necessary, he admitted, but to create many committees 
was to increase ministerial influence, to hinder freedom of 
opinion, and to encourage the despotism of individuals. He 
would even dispense, in time of peace, with a separate diplo- 
matic committee, but would unite it with the committees on 
military and marine affairs, under the general name of the com- 
mittee of safety and defense.^ A diplomatic committee was 
nevertheless formed on October 25, and Brissot's reputation 
for an extended knowledge of foreign affairs secured his election 
to it.3 

As the body to which foreign affairs were referred, the diplo- 
matic committee was one of the most important, if not the most 
important, of all the committees; and Brissot, by virtue of his 
position as its best known member, with the possible excep- 
tion of Koch, the learned professor of international law at the 

1 See p. 420. 

2 Discours sur Vmganisation des comitSs destinS a etre proTtoncS a VAssemhUe 
naiionale le 12 octobre 1791, prononcS aus Jacobins le H octobre. See his prelim- 
inary note. Many of his later speeches, both at the Club and at the Assembly, 
were printed for him by these respective bodies. 

3 Proces-verbal de I'Assemblee nationale, i, 232. See also Ibid., October 18, 
1791. He was elected secretary on that date. There were six secretaries, re- 
newed by half every two weeks. The committee was in part renewed (by lot) 
March 2, but Brissot remained in the committee. He withdrew on June 6, 
and was reelected July 17. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 227 

University of Strasbourg, was thus able to exercise a dominat- 
ing influence upon foreign affairs.^ In view of his previous 
utterances the general policy which Brissot would follow was 
not difl&cult to predict. In his opinion, diplomacy was an 
adjunct of the old regime, and since the old regime was an evil, 
diplomacy was an evil. He failed even to appreciate the possible 
use of diplomacy as a means of avoiding war, and urged France 
to follow the example of the United States with regard to the 
diplomatic corps. He especially urged that the number of per- 
sons employed be diminished and that the salaries of those who 
were retained be reduced. Such measures, Brissot protested, 
would only tend toward peace. ^ 

The immediate diplomatic problems which confronted the 
Assembly in its opening days involved the relation of France 
both to the emigres and to the German princes along the Rhine, 
to whom many of the emigres had fled. The revolutionists were 
incensed against these princes for the support they had given 
to the anti-revolutionary party; and the German princes, many 
of whom had property within French territory, were incensed 
against the revolutionists on account of the recent abolition of 
feudal rights. Alleging that they still held their feudal privi- 
leges from the emperor, they appealed to him to redress their 
wrongs.' At the same time they continued to aid the emigres, 
who, in turn, were stirring them up against France. What was 
to be the attitude of France toward these emigres and toward 
the princes who were supporting them? This, in turn, involved 
the question of the attitude of France toward the emigres in 
general. To these questions Brissot had a ready answer, and 
on October 20, in a speech before the Assembly, set forth his 
views at length. Its most notable feature was its attempt to 
carry out to the fullest extent the liberty guaranteed by the 

^ For an extended consideration of the subject of Brissot's influence on for- 
eign affairs see H. A. Goetz-Bernstein, La Diplomatie de la Gironde, Jacques 
Pierre Brissot, Paris, 1912. 

2 Patriole Franqais, November 16, 1789. 

' The feudal relation of "the immediates" in Alsace was "ambiguous, 
obscure, and litigious." Sorel, L' Europe et la Revolution frangaise, ii, 78. 



228 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

declaration of rights and at the same time protect France from 
the dangers to which that hberty might give rise. The laws 
against the emigres, he maintained, had been confused with the 
laws against revolt. The declaration of rights proclaimed free- 
dom to every one to go wherever it seemed good unto him; 
from which it resulted that the citizens ought to be entirely 
free to emigrate. Then, coming down to more practical con- 
siderations, he drew example from the emigration of the Pro- 
testants under Louis XIV, and argued that if that powerful 
monarch, with his hordes of spies, priests, and soldiers, was not 
able to prevent emigration, it would be quite useless for France, 
under existing conditions, to attempt it. He therefore proposed 
that all emigres should be exhorted to return to France, but 
that in meting out punishment, a clear-cut distinction should 
be made between princes and public functionaries on the one 
hand, and ordinary citizens on the other. As for the foreign 
princes who were encouraging the emigres, here it was no longer 
a question of liberty, but one of self-defense; France must act 
with firnmess and dispatch. Though these princes had univer- 
sally opposed the Revolution, they were not to be feared, even 
though their intentions were hostile. But, he declared, they 
ought to be asked what their intentions really were, and if 
they refused to stop protecting the emigrSs or if they insisted 
on armed mediation, France must not wait for them, but must 
be the first to make the attack. 

This, Brissot's first speech of importance before the Legisla- 
tive Assembly, was a great success. He was vigorously ap- 
plauded and the applause continued as he made his way down 
from the tribune till he reached his seat.^ Outside of the 
Assembly it was received in quite different ways by different 
factions of the press. According to the Journal de la cour et de 
la ville, it was "a ridiculous harangue and consequently ob- 
tained the honor of being printed." "We will not speak further 
of it," added the same journal, "except to say that the consti- 
tution had already deprived le sieur Brissot of his surname de 
1 Moniieur, October 22, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 229 

Varville [sic]. This speech ought surely to make him lose the 
first three letters of the name which are left." ^ Les Revolutions 
de France et de Brabant, on the other hand, spoke of it as a 
superb speech and his draft of a decree as cutting the evil at 
the root.^ 

After a discussion of several weeks, a decree was finally 
passed, November 9, which, while modifying somewhat his 
proposal, accepted the distinction between classes which he 
laid down, severe penalties for flight being imposed only upon 
princes and public functionaries, and upon those bearing arms 
against France.^ 

While the king still had this decree under advisement, Bris- 
sot, on November 15, informed the Assembly that the commit- 
tee was ready to report upon the action to be taken with regard 
to the foreign powers who had aided fugitives, and asked that 
the matter be placed on the calendar for early discussion.^ The 
subject did not, however, receive the prompt attention Brissot 
wished, and when the report was presented it was by Brissot's 
more conservative colleague, Koch.^ Although admitting that 
the German princes of the empire were in the wrong in harboring 
and protecting the emigres, Koch showed his moderation by 
suggesting that it was not improbable that firm and immediate 
action might be successful in averting war. There was no need 
to despair, he mainta.ined, of making those German princes 
understand that it was neither to their interest nor to their 
glory to intrigue with a few fugitives. To bring these princes 
to a realization of their duty to a neighboring nation and to the 
empire was by no means impossible. Again, on November 29, 
he spoke in the same tone, and while accepting the substance 
of a motion of Daverhoult's to the effect that a committee of 
twenty-four be appointed to request the king to communicate 
with the German princes, asking them to state their intentions, 
he objected to that part of the motion which limited to two 

1 Number of October 22, 1791. » No. 98. 

' Moniteur, November 10, 1791. 

* Ibid., November 16, 1791. 6 Ihid., November 23, 1791. 



230 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

weeks the time within which the princes should be required to 
dismiss the emigres. Such a demand, he insisted, was unreason- 
able and it savored too much of an ultimatum. More time 
should be given the princes.^ 

The conciliatory tone of Koch's speech was very different from 
the warlike and immoderate tone of Isnard's reply. "Let us 
say to Europe," he cried, "that if the French people draw the 
sword they will cast the scabbard behind them, and that they 
will sheathe the sword again only when they return crowned 
with the laurels of victory; and that if, in spite of their might 
and courage, they should be vanquished in the defense of lib- 
erty, their enemies will reign only over corpses. Let us say to 
Europe if the cabinets of foreign courts excite a war of kings 
against peoples we will excite a war of peoples against kings." ^ 
This language was not exactly calculated to calm the feelings 
of the kings in question, and, as the Patriote Franqais remarked, 
was indeed " the sword suspended over the head of Damocles." ^ 
It is to be observed, however, that it is the language of which 
the Patriote Frangais approved, and of which it showed its 
approval by noticing at some length the speech of Isnard, while 
it had not a word to say of that of Koch. But in spite of the 
eloquence of Isnard, Koch's arguments prevailed and Daver- 
hoult's motion was amended so as to omit the fixed limit within 
which the princes must reply. As passed, it simply provided 
that the king be requested to make evident by all proper means 
to the princes along the Rhine the absolute necessity of with- 
drawing all assistance from the French emigres.* 

Meanwhile, the king had vetoed the decree against the 
Emigres, a step which Brissot did not hesitate to denounce in 
severe terms. "The veto put by the king upon the decree 
against the emigres" he declared, "is contrary to the spirit of 
the constitution, because, in the first place, it was demanded 
and sanctioned by public opinion and because the king has- 
tened to give his veto without awaiting the expiration of the 

* Moniteur, November 30, 1791. * Ihid., December 1, 1791. 

' Patriote Frangais, November 30, 1791. * Moniteur, December 1, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 231 

time allowed him by the constitution in which to consult public 
opinion." ^ 

The general discussion of the subject of the emigres now gave 
place for a moment to the discussion of a special case. It was a 
question of action against Cardinal de Rohan, who was charged 
with complicity in the plot to deliver Strasbourg to the emigres. 
Again the Patriote Frangais supported the radical side, repre- 
sented in this case by Ruhl, and declared that it was their right 
and their duty to present a decree against the cardinal as a 
French rebel. ^ Koch in reply reminded the Assembly that since 
Cardinal de Rohan, by abandoning his domicile in France, had 
lost his status as a French citizen, they could not indict him 
without exposing themselves uselessly to the danger of arousing 
the empire. Koch thus succeeded in checking the zeal of the 
Assembly. 

With such an appeal to the fear of war Brissot was not in 
sympathy. For some time he had maintained that the possi- 
bility of war was no cause for alarm; if France were timorous 
the example of America might well give her courage. " What 
soldiers of despotism," he cried, "can for any length of time 
withstand the soldiers of liberty! The soldiers of tyrants are 
after pay, they have little fidelity, and desert on the first occa- 
sion. The soldier of liberty fears neither fatigue, danger, nor 
hunger — he rims, he^ flies at the cry of liberty, while despotism 
is scarcely taking a few tottering steps. . . . Oh, you who doubt 
the prodigious and supernatural effects which the love of liberty 
is able to inspire in men, think what the Americans did to gain 
their independence! Think, for example, how Dr. Warren, who 
had never handled a musket, defended Bunker Hill with a 
handful of Americans, badly armed and badly disciplined! . . . 
Follow General Washington making head with three or four 
thousand peasants against thirty thousand Englishmen! " ^ 

^ Patriote Frangais, December 12, 1791. 

* Ibid., December 17, 1791; and Moniteur, December 18, 1791. 
' Discours sur la question de savoir si le roi peut itrejugi, July 10, 1791. See 
Aulard, Les Jacobins, ii, 619-20. 



232 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

But Brissot not only maintained that war was not to be 
feared, but that France should take the initiative.^ There were 
many who argued with him that the equivocal attitude of the 
German princes in regard to the emigres and their openly ex- 
pressed sympathy with the anti-revolutionary party in France 
ought not to be tolerated. Yet a large section, both of the 
Assembly and of the Jacobin Club, held that the trouble could 
be settled by negotiation and diplomacy; that France was not 
ready for war, and that to drag her into a war for which she 
was not prepared was sheer folly. Between the war and the 
anti-war factions, led respectively by Brissot and Robespierre, 
a prolonged struggle now began. ^ It was an uneven contest. 
The traditional and long-continued enmity toward Austria, 
which in the minds of many Frenchmen the treaty of 1756 had 
formally but not really ended, gave to Brissot a decided advan- 
tage.' 

The personal contest with Robespierre was carried on at the 
Jacobin Club, where Brissot was just at the height of his popu- 
larity.* The combat began on December 16, when Brissot in 
one of his longest and most eloquent speeches advocated imme- 
diate war. He began by declaring that, for a people who had 

1 Moniteur, October 22, 1791. 

* Their previous relations had not been unfriendly. Brissot had been in 
sympathy with Robespierre's democracy and especially with his opposition to 
the repeal of the decree of May 15, but Robespierre had been much less inclined 
toward republicanism than Brissot. 

^ Glagau, Diefranzosische Legislative und der Vrsprung der Revolutionskriege, 
1791-92, p. 87. 

* His popularity seems to date from his speech on the dethronement of the 
king (see pp. 175-176). The Club watched \vith keen interest his struggle for 
election to the Assembly and received the news of his success with great de- 
light. Aulard, Les Jacobins, iii, 128, 135. His first appearance at the Jacobin 
Club after his election was greeted with enthusiastic applause, and in response 
he made a brief but telling speech, in which he told the Jacobins that he knew 
what they wanted was deeds not words, and assured them that they would 
always find him at the tribune of the National Assembly under the flag of 
liberty. A few days later he was elected president of the Club. See Aulard, 
Les Jacobins, ni, 195. The exact date of his election is not given, nor is the 
date of his retirement. He is mentioned as president October 3, and his retire- 
ment could not have been later than October 19. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 233 

just acquired their liberty after a dozen centuries of slavery, 
war was necessary in order to establish that liberty on a firm 
basis, in order to test it, to discover whether people were worthy 
of it. It was necessary, moreover, in order to purge away the 
vices of despotism and to get rid of men who might still be a 
source of corruption. He then went on to argue that France 
had already had sufficient provocation; that if she did not 
make the attack, other nations would think her weak and 
would perpetrate further outrages; that the war would not 
injure commerce, and that it was the very best means of strik- 
ing at a single blow the very center of the revolutionary 
movement, "the criminals at Coblenz." Finally, he declared 
that there was not the slightest danger that the king could 
make use of the army to recover his former crown. The day 
had gone by when the soldiers would lend themselves to any 
such dishonor. At every step in the argument Brissot cited 
American example which he seemed to think conclusive. 
America has passed safely through the crucible of war, he 
argued, why should not France? ^ 

At the same time that Brissot was arguing at the Jacobin 
Club for war, the Patriote Frangais was also clamoring for it. 
" War ! War ! Such is the cry of all French patriots," it declared ; 
" such is the desire of all the friends of liberty scattered all over 
Europe, who are only awaiting that happy diversion in order 
to attack and overthrow their tyrants. It is that expiatory war 
which is to renew the face of the world and plant the standard 
of liberty upon the palaces of kings, upon the seraglios of sul- 
tans, upon the chateaux of petty feudal tyrants and upon the 
temples of popes and muftis." ^ 

Meanwhile, the war question entered a new phase. The king 
had called Narbonne to the ministry of war and the latter had 
instigated a vigorous war policy. This was like stealing their 

' Discours sur la nicessite de declarer la guerre. 

* Patriote Frangais, December 17, 1791. The immediate direction of the 
Patriote Frangais at this period, it will be remembered, had been abandoned by 
Brissot in order that he might devote himself more entirely to the work of a 
legislator, but there is no doubt that it continued to represent his sentiments. 



234 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

powder and was decidedly disconcerting to Brissot and his 
friends. Brissot had declared the center of the counter-revolu- 
tion to be the camp of the emigres at Coblenz, and, by his cen- 
sure of the king for leniency toward the emigres, had pretty 
plainly insinuated his connection with the counter-revolution 
and the anti-war faction. Now to find the king appearing as 
the champion of war decidedly weakened his arguments. This 
was a situation of which the opponents of war were not slow to 
take advantage. On December 18, Robespierre made a speech 
on the subject at the Jacobin Club, in which he pointed out 
that as the ministry desired war, to bring it about would only 
be playing into their hands. "War," he declared, "is always 
the first desire of a powerful government which desires to 
increase its power. I need not say that it is during war that the 
ministry succeeds in exhausting the people and wasting the 
revenues; that it covers its depredations and its sins with an 
impenetrable veil. I will not speak to you of what touches most 
directly the heart of our interests. It is during war that the 
executive power displays the most dangerous energy; that it 
exercises a kind of dictatorship which only serves to frighten 
liberty; it is during war that people neglect their civil and polit- 
ical rights, and occupy themselves only with foreign affairs; it is 
during war that they turn their attention from their legislators 
and magistrates and attach all their interests and hopes to 
their generals and ministers." ^ 

The answer of the Patriate Frangais to this trenchant argu- 
ment was that the court only made a pretense of desiring war, 
but in reality it did not desire it at all, as was evident from the 
way in which it had allowed the counter-revolution to grow and 
extend. 2 The fact that it had not ceased to protect the enemies 
of the Revolution within was good reason for suspecting that it 
might have some understanding with the enemies without.* 

Inspired by this idea the demands for war continued. Brissot 

* Discours de Maximilien Robespierre, December 18, 1791. 

* Reference to the vetoes of the decrees against the SmigrSs and priests. 
' Patriote Franqais, December 20, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 235 

was well supported. On the same day on which Robespierre 
made his second speech at the Jacobin Club, December 18, 
Roederer had argued for war, especially on the ground of self- 
defense, and in the Assembly the cause was now taken up by 
Louvet and Gensonn^, who even exceeded Brissot himself in 
the vehemence of their demands. "We shall ask you for a 
scourge, terrible but indispensable," cried Louvet. "We shall 
ask for war. War ! And instantly let France rise in arms ! . . . 
With the swiftness of lightning let thousands of our citizen 
soldiers precipitate themselves upon the domains of feudalism. 
Let them stop only where servitude ends; let the palace be sur- 
rounded by bayonets; let the declaration of rights be deposited 
in the cottage. Let man everywhere, educated and delivered 
from oppression, regain the feeling of his early dignity, let the 
human race arise and breathe." ^ But in order that these some- 
what extensive aims might be realized, money was necessary, 
and the Assembly was speedily brought down from the clouds 
to consider this practical necessity by a request of Narbonne 
for twenty millions. Of the announcement that Narbonne was 
to be made minister of war, the Patriote Frangais had spoken 
with anything but enthusiasm, and had remarked, when he 
took the oath of fidelity to the king and the constitution, that 
it was to be hoped that it was not an empty form.^ But now 
that Narbonne was pursuing an active war policy, the Brisso- 
tins, although they were not altogether in sympathy with him, 
came to a partial agreement at least as far as a common deter- 
mination to seek alliance with England and Prussia ^ and to 
urge a vigorous war policy against Austria. To carry out this 
purpose they now supported his demand for money.* Accord- 
ingly, on December 26, Brissot explained the action of the 
committees on the subject and Gensonn^ presented the report. 
There was no longer a middle ground between liberty and slav- 
ery, Gensonn^ declared. And, in closing his speech, he pro- 
claimed with almost the ardor of Isnard: "The common enemy 

^ Moniteur, December 27, 1791. * Patriote Frangais, November 8, 1791. 
» See p. 250. * Glagau, 78-85. 



236 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

is at the gates, a general assault threatens us. Why do we dis- 
pute? Why do we fight each other? . . . Let us run to the 
breach to defend our ramparts or to be buried under the 
ruins." ^ The appeal was effective, for the Assembly voted 
the twenty millions unanimously. 

This enthusiasm Brissot did not allow to cool, and a few days 
later made another speech of most belligerent temper. In spite 
of the fact that the king was now favoring a warlike attitude, 
Brissot did not hesitate to cast suspicion on the sincerity of his 
intentions. "You passed a decree against the rebels," he re- 
minded the Assembly; "the king's veto made it of no effect. . . . 
The enemies of the Revolution have continued their threats 
and their gatherings; the executive power has continued its 
indulgence." And even when the king did take active steps, 
Brissot continued, he showed that he did not realize what was 
fitting a constitutional king, by announcing to the Elector of 
Treves that he would regard him as an enemy instead of saying 
that the nation would regard him as an enemy. But, granted 
that the motive of the king might be open to suspicion, that 
was no reason for not declaring war. As for possible danger, 
Brissot was most optimistic and maintained that, although 
foreign nations were making warlike preparations, they were 
not to be feared. The English people, he declared, if not the 
English government, were in sympathy with the Revolution; 
Austria was torn by internal dissensions, Germany was really 
peaceable, Sweden was poor, Russia was too far away, Poland 
was their friend. Moreover, war was necessary for honor's 
sake, for external safety, for internal tranquillity; in order to 
establish the finances and public credit of France; in order 
to put an end to terror, treason, and anarchy. War was actually 
a national benefit, and the only calamity to be feared was not 
to have war. He then spoke of the diplomatic transactions, and 
presented the draft of a decree which included a notification 
to foreign powers that any help given to French emigres would 
be regarded as an act of hostility; a demand upon the emperor 
^ Moniteur, December 28, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 237 

that he not only use his good offices with the German princes, 
but also that he send troops into Brabant to prevent all gather- 
ings of rebels; and the recall of the representatives of France 
from the courts of Stockholm, St. Petersburg, and Rome.^ The 
whole speech showed an utter disregard of diplomatic usage, 
and its entire argument may be summed up in the phrase which 
Brissot used with telling efiFect: "The French Revolution has 
overturned all diplomacy." ^ 

Brissot was followed by H^rault de S^chelles and by Condor- 
cet, who presented drafts of an address, setting forth in unmis- 
takable terms the attitude of the war party toward the Rhenish 
princes.' In a burst of enthusiasm it was proposed to send this 
address, not only to the departments, but also to foreign pow- 
ers. Cooler heads fortunately perceived the rashness of such 
procedure and the clause concerning foreign powers was with- 
drawn; but the essential part of the motion — an indictment 
of the French princes who were in arms against France — was 
carried.^ 

While these decrees were being discussed, Brissot resumed 
the conflict with Robespierre at the Jacobin Club and made 
another attempt to convince the society that war would not 
mean danger. As before, he drew his illustrations from America 
and considered actual conditions from a most optimistic and 
impractical point of view. There was no longer reason to fear 
the ministry, he ar^ed, neither was there reason to fear the 
final outcome. If France was successful under despotism, what 
might not be expected from France now that she was free? As 
for the internal dangers of treason and loss of credit, treason 

^ Moniteur, December 30 and 31, 1791. 

* In spite of his disdain for the diplomacy of the old regime, Brissot was not 
always consistent. When, for example, the rights of certain French citizens 
in Spain were involved, he was the first to make loud complaint that the 
Facte de Famille — that is to say, the defensive alliance which had taken the 
place of the original compact — had been violated. But when, a few weeks 
later, it was pointed out that France in turn owed something to foreign powers, 
he was as swift to denounce that same Facte de Famille as "impolitic, danger- 
ous, and unconstitutional." Moniteur, January 30, 1792. 

3 Moniteur, December 31, 1791. * Ibid., January 2, 1792. 



238 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

was really to be desired as a means of getting rid of poison, 
and the prosperity of the finances depended on their putting 
down the rebels. Moreover, they would receive a warm welcome 
from the oppressed peoples against whose rulers they were con- 
tending. Finally, heroes would arise in France as in America, 
and if America, which was far worse ofif than France, was victo- 
rious, why should France too not win victory? ^ 

This argument was in turn answered by Robespierre, who, 
in an admirable speech, very skillfully met the fallacies of 
Brissot's reasoning. He began by admitting that sentiment 
and emotion were on the side of war, and that to argue against 
it was to support an unpopular cause. "But," he said, — and 
this was the basis of his argument, — " reason is against it. 
Brissot's idea is beautiful, theoretically, but are we so sure of 
success? It is admitted that war is desired by the emigres, the 
ministry, and the intriguers of the court, and all these factions 
constitute too dangerous and subtle a menace to be overlooked. 
America's example, as an argument for our success, is worthless, 
because the circumstances are different; and as for the state- 
ment that we will find a ready response among the peoples of 
the countries against which we fight, it is well to remember that 
people do not change their customs easily and that no one loves 
armed missionaries. The thing for us to do," he concluded, "is 
to set our own affairs in order and to acquire liberty for our- 
selves before offering it to others." ^ 

A few days later, Louvet, supporting Brissot, replied to these 
arguments,^ and on January 11 Robespierre spoke again.^ In 
spite of Robespierre's efforts, Brissot won a signal, if temporary, 
victory, for the society voted to send to the affiliated clubs a 
circular letter prepared by the correspondence committee of the 

1 Second discours de J. P. Brissot . . . sur la nicessitS de faire la guerre. 
December 30, 1791 . See also Aulard, Les Jacobins, in, 303. 

'^ Discours de Maximilien Robespierre sur la guerre. January 2, 1792. Aulard, 
Les Jacobins, in, 309. 

3 Discours de Jean-Baptiste Louvet sur la guerre, January 9, 1792. Aulard, 
Les Jacobins, in, 317. 

* Ibid., ui, 318. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 239 

Jacobins, in which the arguments in favor of war were set forth 
and certain newspapers, including the Patriote Frangais, were 
recommended as patriotic. This was certainly equivalent to an 
approval of war, for the Patriote Frangais was belligerency 
itself, reporting at length speeches in favor of war and casting 
contempt on all arguments against it. 

Meanwhile, the discussion in the Assembly shifted from the 
emigres and their protectors, the princes, to the emperor, to 
whom, as head of the empire, the princes appealed. On January 
14, Gensonne, in the name of the diplomatic committee, pre- 
sented a report on the conduct to be pursued toward the 
emperor. The report declared that, inasmuch as Austria had 
turned the treaty of 1756 to her own profit, and since the 
emperor had sanctioned the encouragement of the emigres by 
the Elector of Treves, and had himself been responsible for the 
declaration of Pilnitz and the Padua circular, the ministers 
should be required to demand an explanation from him before 
February 10, and meanwhile begin preparations for war.^ This 
report Brissot characterized as "remarkable for its wisdom and 
firmness." But to the moderate Koch it seemed most unwise, 
and while not censuring the war party directly, he stoutly main- 
tained that there was ground for believing that both the em- 
peror and the Elector of Treves were inclined toward peace, 
and furthermore that they were disposed to concede all that 
the French nation could in justice demand.^ 

Brissot, however, would have none of such conciliatory sug- 
gestions. Even the proposal of Gensonne, that the emperor be 
asked for an immediate explanation of his conduct, seemed to 
him too mild. To ask for an explanation, he declared, puts us 
at the mercy of the emperor. To demand satisfaction puts him 
at ours. " I will not say to the emperor, with your committee," 
he continued, "*Will you execute the treaty of 1756?' But I 

^ Moniteur, January 15, 1792. 

^ Ibid., January 18, 1792. See also Goetz-Bernstein, 72. The concessions 
of the emperor and of the Elector of Treves certainly gave ample ground 
for Koch's claims. 



240 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

will say to him, 'You have yourself violated the treaty of 1756. 
We, therefore, have the right to regard it as already broken.* 
I will not say with your committee, 'Will you engage not to 
attack France nor to assail its independence? ' But I will say, 
'You have formed a league against France. I, therefore, have a 
right to fight you, and the attack is just and necessary.' Either 
the emperor wants the war or he does not want it," Brissot con- 
tinued. "If he wants it, it would be senseless not to forestall 
him; if he does not want it, he would be senseless not to fore- 
stall it by giving you, as soon as possible, the satisfaction which 
you have the right to expect." Then, turning to France, he 
demanded: " Can you fear this Austria whose people are already 
your friends, even though its government does hate you? Can 
you fear this cabinet of Vienna which Richelieu caused to 
tremble — Richelieu, who governed only slaves; from which 
Louis XIV took its most beautiful provinces; to which the 
timid Fleury himself dictated the laws? Should France, free, 
fear this cabinet? " ^ 

This stirring appeal to patriotic pride produced a strong 
impression, but there were at least a few who were not to be 
blinded to the dangers of war, and the next day Mathieu Dumas 
counseled prudence. The burden of his plea was that if war 
were indeed inevitable, it ought to be waged, but that it ought 
not, by rash measures, to be made inevitable. What little 
impression Dumas's warning may have produced was immedi- 
ately effaced by Vergniaud, who used all his eloquence to sup- 
port Brissot. "To arms! To arms!" he cried; "citizens, free 
men, defend your liberty, assure liberty to mankind. It seems 
to me," he declared, in closing his appeal, " as though the spirits 
of past generations were filling the place, in order to adjure you 
in the name of the evils which they suffered, to preserve future 
generations whose destinies are in your hands. Answer that 
prayer: be for the future a new providence; ally yourself with 
the Eternal Justice which protects the French people. Then, 
while deserving the title of benefactors of your country, you 
^ Moniteur, January 19, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 241 

will also deserve the title of benefactors of the human 
race." ^ 

These appeals to patriotism and promises of glory prevailed 
over the warnings of caution; and after several days of further 
discussion Brissot, supported by his friends,^ succeeded in get- 
ting the substance of his motion adopted.^ Although the time 
allowed the emperor for reply was extended to March 1, nothing 
was said of an explanation, and the form of the communication 
was unconciliatory enough to suit even Brissot's most radical 
demands. It read: "The king shall be requested to declare to 
the emperor that, unless he gives to the nation, before March 1, 
full and entire satisfaction upon the points indicated above, his 
silence, as well as any dilatory answer, will be regarded as a 
declaration of war." 

Meanwhile, at the Jacobin Club, too, as well as before the 
Assembly, Brissot argued for war. The emperor, he asserted 
again, was in a state of open hostility toward France, and it 
was as much a matter of safety as of dignity to attack him, in 
case he did not give them satisfaction. The discussion there 
soon took the form of a personal quarrel between Robespierre 
and Brissot. Robespierre accused Brissot of showing approval 
of Lafayette, and Brissot denied that he had had anything to do 
with Lafayette for months.* After defending himself, he closed 
his speech with an expression of regret that the differences of 
opinion between patriots should injure the public welfare.^ 
Whereupon Dusaulx, seizing upon the last phrase, declared 
that two such good patriots ought to love and esteem each 
other, and proposed that they show their affection by embrac- 
ing each other. At this Brissot and Robespierre promptly flew 
into each other's arms. This dramatic demonstration naturally 
did not in the slightest degree change their respective opinions 

1 Moniteur, January 20, 1792. 

2 See speech of Isnard. Ibid., January 22, 1792. 

» Ihid., January 26, 1792. See also Goetz-Berastein, 84. 
* Aulard, Les Jacobins, in, 331-34. 

' Troisieme discours de J. P. Brissot sur la nicessite de la guerre, January 20, 
1792. Ibid., m, 333. 



242 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

in regard to the war, and within a week Robespierre made 
another speech against it.^ 

The struggle hkewise continued in the Assembly. The vic- 
tory which Brissot and the radical section of the diplomatic 
committee had gained in the Assembly, their opponents did 
not propose to regard as final. Koch, especially, persevered in 
his efforts to bring the Assembly back to a moderate policy and 
thus to avoid war. On February 1, apropos of a letter written 
by the Emperor Leopold, he called attention to the fact that the 
emperor in ordering an armament was only carrying out the 
will of the Diet, and that that measure did not, or, at least, 
need not necessarily imply the hostile intentions imputed to 
it. "It is only just to the emperor to say," Koch declared, 
"that, while the affair of the princes owning land in France was 
discussed in the Diet, he played the role of a pacificator and 
used all his efforts to bring the matter to a peaceable settle- 
ment." France had, indeed, no need to fear its enemies, Koch 
agreed, but it was wise not to seek to increase their number. ^ 

The importance of Brissot's influence in these discussions is 
evident from the bitterness of the attacks made upon him, 
both from the counter-revolutionists and from the opponents 
of the war. As an instance of the former may be cited a carica- 
ture announced by the Journal de la cour et de la ville, of Janu- 
ary 4, 1792, which represents a young man slipping up behind 
an old gentleman who was walking in the Palais Royal and put- 
ting his hand into his pocket. The legend beneath read: "Bris- 
sot en mettant ses gauds" [sic], a decided reflection on Brissot's 
political, if not his personal, honesty. The most successful at- 
tack was that made by his fellow Jacobin, Camille Desmoulins, 
in his Jean Pierre Brissot (^ewasq'we,^ which appeared in January, 
1792. Indeed, this pamphlet is said to have made more stir 
than any other one pamphlet published during the Revolu- 
tion.^ Its real cause was to be found in Brissot's growing popu- 

^ Troisieme discours de Maximilien Robespierre sur la guerre, January 26, 
1792. Ibid., Ill, 342. 

2 Moniteur, February 2, 1792. ' See p. 4, note. 

* CEuvres de Desmoulins, ed. by Claretie, i, 251. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 243 

larity as a leader of the war party. Moreover, Desmoulins was 
at this time on intimate terms with Robespierre and undoubt- 
edly wrote the pamphlet with the desire to support his friend 
and possibly at his instigation.^ The occasion which called it 
forth was a dispute concerning the laws against gambling. 
Desmoulins, in the practice of his profession as a lawyer, had 
been engaged to defend certain persons accused of keeping a 
gambling-house. In spite of his efforts, his clients were con- 
victed and sent to prison. Whereupon he placarded Paris with 
a complaint of the severity of the laws against gambling. Bris- 
sot was shocked at Desmoulins 's apologies for gambling and 
promptly denounced him through the columns of the Patriote 
Frangais as an immoral person unworthy the name of patriot. ^ 
To Brissot's denunciations Desmoulins replied by the pam- 
phlet, Jean Pierre Brissot demasque. Brissot had quite mis- 
understood his notice, Desmoulins declared. Its object was not 
to attack the law itself, but only to warn the public against a 
despotism of law as bad as a despotism of monarchy. After 
thus briefly defending his own action, Desmoulins turned all 
the force of his invective against his adversary. Indeed, his 
real purpose was to assail, and, if possible, to destroy, Brissot's 
reputation. His arraignment was an extremely clever piece of 
work and showed great skill in hitting upon Brissot's weakest 
and most vulnerable points. Moreover, it was as cutting in 
innuendo as in what it actually said. There were many things, 
Desmoulins began, in Brissot's past, which, in spite of his pre- 
tense of virtue, would not bear the light, and then he proceeded 
to drag them out. He declared, for instance, on the authority 
of Baron Grimm, that Brissot had been a police spy, under the 
old regime, in the service of M. Lenoir at one hundred and fifty 
francs a month. ^ To acknowledge that Brissot was a rogue was, 

^ Desmoulins's enmity toward Brissot dated from May, 1791, when he had 
taken umbrage at the patronizing tone of an article in the Patriote Frangais. 
For Desmoulins's reply see Claretie, Desmoulins, 178, note. 

2 Patriote Frangais, January 12, 1792. 

^ This pretended letter of Grimm to Volney is from Rivarol. It was pub- 
lished first in the Actes des Apotres and was afterward reprinted by Barbier and 



244 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

he declared, to give him too much credit for cleverness. " I will 
not say that you are a Sinon who slipped in among the patriots 
only to incite them to bad measures, who ranged himself with 
the Jacobins only to make a rear attack upon the strongest and 
most clear-sighted defenders of liberty. I do not believe that 
you are a traitor; that role is too odious, and you are not ca- 
pable of such crime." The harm which Brissot had done, Des- 
moulins continued, could be satisfactorily accounted for only 
on the hypothesis of stupidity, and that was saying a good 
deal, for notwithstanding the fine title of the Patriote Frangais, 
Brissot alone had done more harm to the cause of patriotism 
and the Revolution than had all the aristocrats together. In 
his excessive zeal, he had advocated reforms regardless of the 
expediency of the moment, he had preached republicanism in 
season and out of season, and finally, he had stirred up the 
trouble which was devastating the colonies. The whole attack 
did much to make Brissot ridiculous. It appears to have gone 
practically unanswered. 

The war question now entered a new phase, in which the 
division in the diplomatic committee became more pronounced 
and the debates more violent. On March 1, Delessart. the min- 
ister for foreign affairs, made a report to the Assembly of his 
correspondence with the emperor's ministers.^ The moderate 
tone of this report displeased the war party, whereupon they 
demanded that the matter be referred for investigation to the 
diplomatic committee. The failure of the committee to make 
an immediate report aroused Brissot's indignation, and on 
March 10 he registered a formal complaint before the Assem- 
bly, charging the diplomatic committee with being determined 

by Malassis in Ecrits et pamphlets de Rivarol. L' IntermMiare des chercheurs et 
des curieux, January 25, 1891, xxiv, 61. 

^ Moniteur, March 2, 1792. See also the Proces-verbaux of the diplomatic 
committee (A. N. F^, 4395). On February 23 the minister for foreign affairs 
had reported to the diplomatic committee that the attitude of foreign powers 
toward France was one of hesitation; and on February 27 he reported that 
the emperor had declared that it had never been his intention to sustain 
the Emigres. 



MEMBER OF THJE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 245 

to let the Delessart affair drop. It was too dangerous a matter 
to be passed over, he protested, and asked that time be reserved 
for him that afternoon that he might himself take up the accu- 
sation against Delessart. It does not appear to be without sig- 
nificance that this indignation of Brissot's found expression on 
the very day after the king had dismissed Narbonne. Al- 
though, as has been pointed out, Brissot was in accord with 
Narbonne in that they were both working for war,^ yet he seems 
to have felt that Narbonne had stolen his powder, and in the 
Patriote Frangais he criticized him severely and frequently. At 
the same time he infinitely preferred Narbonne to the rest of 
the ministry, who were under suspicion, and with good ground, 
of being reactionary. The dismissal of Narbonne thus left the 
Brissotins without support in the ministry. It was but natural, 
therefore, that Brissot should seize the occasion of the dismissal 
of one minister to help oust another, and so make way for an 
entirely new ministry. 

His frank avowal of difference of opinion within the diplo- 
matic committee on the Delessart affair provoked a heated dis- 
cussion. To the aspersions cast by Brissot on the committee 
several members retorted that one of their number had already 
been chosen to make the report; that the matter had been dis- 
cussed in at least four sessions of the committee; and further- 
more, that Brissot knew that to be the case.'' This assertion 
Brissot met with violent protests, and after an excited debate 
it was decreed that he be heard at two o'clock. His speech, 
which was of great length, was devoted to a violent attack on 
the emperor and a still more violent arraignment of Delessart.^ 
The foreign powers were hostile in interest if not in action, he 
argued, and Delessart had concealed their real attitude from 
the Assembly, and what was worse, he had carried on negotia- 
tions with them in a very different spirit from that intended by 

^ Narbonne's policy was more moderate and his plans not so extensive. 
See Sorel, ii, 342. See also Glagau, 181. "Brissot und die Gironde vmnschten 
den Krieg aiif jeden Fall und sobald als thurUich; dagegen war Narbonne und 
seine Freundschajt nicht so hitzig." 

2 Moniteur, March 12, 1792. ' Ibid.; also Proces-verbal, March 10, 1792. 



246 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the Assembly. He could not plead ignorance, for if he had not 
known how things stood, he had signally failed in his duty. On 
the other hand, if he had known how things stood and failed to 
report them, he was a traitor. The Assembly had thus wasted 
valuable time when war ought long since to have been declared. 
The emperor must be required to cease his machinations in 
concert with the other powers against France, and Delessart 
must be impeached.^ Brissot's object, then, was to establish a 
charge of high treason against Delessart, based upon the minis- 
ter's alleged betrayal of the interests of France, as revealed in 
the dispatches between the Austrian minister for foreign affairs 
and himself. According to Von Sybel no speech was ever " more 
malicious, violent, and devoid of argument," ^ for however much 
Delessart, in his heart, may have been inclined to the Austrian 
coalition, the notes in question contained what the National 
Assembly had itself decreed. On the other hand, although 
Delessart may have stated to Austria the letter of the decrees 
of the Assembly, there was evidence that he had misinterpreted, 
whether consciously or unconsciously, their spirit. Ordinary 
prudence, however, might well have suggested to Delessart the 
wisdom of expressing the demands of the Assembly in terms of 
more moderation. But whatever his motive, his action was 
now branded by Brissot as a crime against the honor and safety 
of the state.' 

So great was the effect produced by Brissot's speech that a 
motion was at once offered that Delessart be called immedi- 
ately to the bar to answer the accusations made against him. 
To this extreme measure the more moderate deputies objected, 
and a stormy discussion ensued between the war and the anti- 
war parties. Several members tried to speak at once, there was 

^ It was not exactly impeachment in the usual sense of the term, for the 
effect of the action of the Assembly was not to send the accused before an 
upper house for trial, but to send him to the high national court at Orleans. 

"^ Von Sybel, French Revolution, i, 432. 

' Glagau, 143-46. Goetz-Bernstein, 139, says: "C'esf Brissot qui inaugura 
avec succes la politique de violence, des procedes atroces et de ces dinonciations 
calomnieuses dont il sera plus iard victime lui-meme." 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 247 

a wild scramble for the tribune, and such an uproar that no one 
could be heard. M. Becquet finally gained the attention of the 
Assembly long enough to remind them that they had only 
recently applauded some of the same communications of 
M. Delessart which they now condemned, and that the diplo- 
matic committee had not felt and did not yet feel that it was 
ready to report on the denunciation of M. Delessart.^ To this 
Brissot retorted that all the members of the diplomatic commit- 
tee had declared their disapproval of Delessart. Hereupon 
several of the members started up to protest, and one of them, 
M. Jaucourt, succeeded in obtaining the floor. " The diplomatic 
committee," he explained, "has often had reason to suspect 
Delessart, but it had not been able to get proof. , . . Brissot, 
who has constantly refused to communicate his accusation 
to the committee — "He did not have a chance to complete 
the sentence, for this last charge brought Brissot to his feet 
with a prompt denial, and the lie was passed between them. 
Guadet, Vergniaud, and Gensonne rushed to the support 
of Brissot, while their antagonists pressed for adjournment. 
The motion for adjournment failed; and, although the sug- 
gestion of calling Delessart to the bar immediately was 
dropped, Brissot's motion for an impeachment was carried 
by a large majority, and measures were ordered for putting 
it in force. ^ 

To read the arguments of Brissot, one would suppose that he 
was influenced solely by motives of patriotism and disinterested 
zeal ; but, if Etienne Dumont is to be believed, Brissot, far from 
being actuated by disinterested motives, had, for the purpose 
of gaining control of the ministry, descended to an accusation 
made in bad faith. "I heard this act," wrote Dumont, "con- 
taining seventeen or eighteen counts, read in the committee. 
When alone with Brissot and Claviere I made some observa- 

1 Moniteur, March 12, 1792. 

^ The Patriate Frangais in its account of this debate is misleading. It even 
makes the statement that in all the course of the discussion, lasting two hours, 
not one word was said in favor of M. Delessart. 



248 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

tions on the subject. I said the counts were many of them one 
and the same thing; others so vague that it was impossible to 
answer them; that they were generally artful, and calculated 
to excite undue prejudice and violent animosity against the 
accused; that some of them were contradictory; and that per- 
sonal invective ought to be carefully avoided in a criminal 
accusation, etc. I have forgotten what else I said; but if, upon 
the whole, I was displeased with this document, I was indig- 
nant at Brissot's reply. Laughing at my simplicity, he said in 
a tone of disgusting levity: * It is a necessary party maneuver. 
Delessart must positively go to Orleans, otherwise the king, 
who is attached to him, would replace ^ him in the administra- 
tion. We must steal a march upon the Jacobins, and this act 
of impeachment gives us the merit of having done that which 
they would themselves do. This is so much taken from them. 
I know that the counts are multiplied without necessity, but 
the object of this is to lengthen the proceedings. Garan de 
Coulon, who is at the head of the high national court, is a nice 
observer of legal forms; he will proceed methodically in the 
examination of each separate count, and six months will elapse 
before Delessart will be able to get rid of the affair. I know that 
he will be acquitted, because there is no evidence against him; 
but we shall have gained our object by preventing his return to 
office.' 'Good God!' I exclaimed, confounded at such odious 
principles, 'are you so deep in party Machiavelism? Are you 
the man whom I once knew so decided an enemy to subterfuge.'* 
Is it Brissot who now persecutes an innocent man!' . . . 'But,' 
he replied, disconcerted, 'you are not aware of our situation. 
Delessart's administration would destroy us, and we must get 
rid of him at any price. It is only a temporary measure. I know 
Garan's integrity and Delessart will come to no harm. But we 
must save the country, and we cannot overcome the Austrian 
cabinet unless the minister for foreign affairs be a man on whom 
we can depend. Nevertheless, I will attend to your observa- 

1 Replace is evidently used here to mean that the king would retain Delessart 
in his position. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 249 

tions, and strike out the terms of invective to which you so 
properly object.'" ^ 

In considering this charge against Brissot, it is to be taken 
into account that Dumont wrote his Souvenirs in 1799, some 
years after the incident in question. On the other hand, the 
minuteness and the character of the details are presumptive 
evidence of their truth. Moreover, the coincidence of the date 
of the fall of the Narbonne ministry and the accusations against 
Delessart suggests, as remarked above, an adequate motive for 
intrigues on Brissot's part to get control of the ministry and 
gives color to the charge of interested motives, if not of abso- 
lute bad faith. 

Whatever his motive, Brissot succeeded in carrying his point, 
and on March 14 his draft of articles of impeachment against 
Delessart was accepted.^ He immediately followed it up by a 
demand that Delessart be required to submit to the diplomatic 
committee all his correspondence with the envoys of France at 
foreign courts.^ Such a demand shocked the conservatives, 
who pointed out the danger of making public negotiations 
regarding delicate international questions which might still be 
adjusted peaceably if only they were kept secret. Moreover, it 
would be, they declared, a violation of the constitution. To 
these warnings Brissot refused to listen; and, supported by 
Maillie, who amended the original motion so as to include the 
foreign correspondence from May 1, 1789, he got his motion 
passed. 

Whatever was the conscious motive of Brissot in assailing 
Delessart, the decree against the latter was followed by an 
entire change of ministry. The new ministry, in the appoint- 
ment of which Brissot had considerable influence,^ included 
Dumouriez, Roland, and Claviere, and was afterward known 
as the first Girondin ministry. It might better be called the 
Brissotin ministry. With Dumouriez in charge of foreign 

^ Dumont, Souvenirs, 378-80, given as translated in Recollections of Mira- 
beau, 310-12. 

2 Moniteur, March 15, 1792. ' Ibid. * See p. £62. 



250 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

aflfairs, Brissot and his friends had an active ally. Their com- 
mon policy was to make war upon Austria, if possible by an 
alliance with other powers, but at all events war upon Austria. 
Their hopes were for an alliance with England and Prussia. 
Indeed, they had already secured the appointment of a com- 
mission to negotiate with England.^ Talleyrand was so obvi- 
ously the most capable man for the place that the Girondins, 
in spite of some prejudice against him, consented to his appoint- 
ment, while Chauvelin ^ was made nominal head of the com- 
mission and Duroveray,^ who was in special favor with the 
Girondins, was added to the legation with the title of coun- 
sel.* As the price of the alliance, Tobago was to be suggested, 
and if that were not sufficiently alluring, the lie de France and 
the lie de Bourbon. It was even hinted by the enemies of the 
Girondins that they would not stop at the surrender of fortified 
places, or even at the suggestion of a possible change of dynasty 
in France.^ At the same time Segur and a subordinate agent, 
Jarry, were dispatched to Berlin on a like errand.^ This pro- 
posed alliance Brissot not only furthered through his influence 
with the ministry, but also supported in his newspaper, noting 
with approval Condorcet's argument that France and Prussia 
had in common hatred of Austria; and France and England, 
the liberty of the sea.^ Despite their efforts, however, these 
attempts at alliance came to naught. 

1 See p. 235. 

2 Chauvelin, Frangois, Marquis de (born 1766, died 1812). Master of the 
wardrobe under Louis XVI, aide-de-camp of Rochambeau in the war of the 
American Revolution. He was imprisoned during the Terror and released after 
Thermidor. 

' Duroveray, procureur-genSral at Geneva, was banished in 1782. Later he 
was one of that group of men attached to Mirabeau, who helped him prepare 
his speeches. 

* Dumont, Souvenirs, 419-20. 

^ Sorel, L' Europe et la revolution frangaise, ii, 336. Sorel quotes Morris, 
Pellenc a Le Marck, Leouzon de Due. See also Seconde annexe a la depeche du 
Comte de Mercy en date du H Janvier, 1792, probably from Pellenc, in Feuillet 
de Conche, v, 124-26. Feuillet de Conche's work is, however, not to be implic- 
itly relied upon. See also Goetz-Bemstein, 106-07, and note. 

" Goetz-Bernstein, 113-15. 

^ Patriote Frangais, January 22, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 251 

Dumouriez, meanwhile, proceeded on the assumption that 
war with Austria was inevitable, and in his negotiations and in 
his instructions to the army did all in his power to make it so. 
On April 18 and 19, he communicated to the Assembly the dis- 
patches of Noailles, the French minister at the court of 
Vienna; ^ and on April 20 he induced the king himself to come 
down to the Assembly and ask for a declaration of war. In 
spite of the efforts of Becquet, who made one last attempt to 
open the eyes of the Assembly to the perils into which they 
were so heedlessly rushing, Girondin influence prevailed and 
the decree for war was carried with but seven dissenting 
voices.^ 

In summing up this war policy of Brissot's two interesting 
questions present themselves: First, how far was it a Girondin 
policy? That is to say, was Brissot well supported? Were the 
other members of the group as eager for war as he? Second, 
what were their motives in adopting this policy? Was it with 
the idea of overthrowing the king and establishing a republic? 

First, as to the policy itself. Has the belligerency of the 
Girondins as a whole been exaggerated? Some of their speeches 
certainly sounded belligerent enough — such, for instance, as 
the oratorical outburst of Isnard, quoted above, when he de- 
clared that the French people, having once "cast the scabbard 
behind them, would sheathe the sword again only when they 
returned crowned with the laurels of victory," and that if, in 
spite of their strength and courage they should be vanquished 
in the defense of liberty, their enemies would reign only over 
corpses; ^ or Lou vet's proposition that their mission was to sur- 
round the castle with bayonets and place the declaration of 
rights in the cottage.* The point is to know whether, when it 
came to tangible measures, they were as ready to take drastic 
action. The evidence would seem to show that they were. 
Isnard certainly was eager enough in his support of Brissot's 
demand that the foreign princes be called to account for harbor- 

1 Moniteur, April 20, 1792. ^ Ibid., April 22, 1792. 

3 See p. 230. * See p. 235. 



252 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

ing the emigres. He would not only demand an explanation, 
but would proceed to make war upon the emigres, even though 
they themselves had no intention of attacking France. That 
their gathering on the border was a drain upon the treasury 
and a menace to the peace of the country was enough to pro- 
voke hostilities.^ On the 5th of January he again argued vehe- 
mently for war, declaring that it was indispensable; ^ and on the 
20th of January he approved Brissot's demand for an immedi- 
ate response from the emperor, but would go even further and 
require the emperor to withdraw his troops and to reduce their 
numbers in Belgium to that number agreed on in the treaty 
arrangements.^ Louvet, too, was eager for rigorous measures 
against the emigres, while Vergniaud, like Isnard, would go 
even beyond Brissot. In the first place, he was for more severe 
measures than Brissot in regard to the emigres in general, and 
when it concerned the action to be taken with regard to the 
emperor, he not only upheld Brissot's demand for an immediate 
response in opposition to the milder requests of the committee, 
but had the audacity to suggest that the emperor should 
be requested to forbid the white cockade in his states, and 
extradite such of the emigres as were fugitives from jus- 
tice.* Even Brissot, in his wildest moments, hardly went as 
far as this. 

Gensonn^ and Guadet also constantly supported Brissot, 
though they were more moderate than he. Guadet, for exam- 
ple, when in December it was a question of taking immediate 
action against the emigres, suggested that the decree be put off, 
since the former decree against the emigres gave them till Jan- 
uary 1 to cease their hostile manifestation; and Gensonn^, 
while arguing that all haste be made in preparing for war, at 
the same time urged as a motive that this was the best way to 
secure peace.^ In view also of the speeches in favor of war by 

1 Moniteur, December 1, 1791. ^ Ibid., January 6, 1792, 

3 Ibid., January 22, 1792. * Ibid., January 20, 1792. 

6 Ibid., December 28, 1791. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 253 

Manuel,^ Roederer,' Ban gal,' and Cloots,^ it cannot be asserted 
that there was any lack of belHgerency among the Girondins 
and Girondin sympathizers, though it is perhaps safe to say 
that — with the exception of Vergniaud, Louvet, Isnard, and 
Brissot himself — their emphasis was not so much on war alone, 
as on war as a means of peace. 

This matter of motive suggests the second question: Did the 
Girondins hope by means of the war to overthrow the king and 
to establish a republic? The question is somewhat difficult to 
answer, for after the republic was once established, they were 
naturally anxious, in the face of suspicion of royalism, to date 
their republicanism as far back as they possibly could, and to 
claim that the desire to overthrow the monarchy and to estab- 
lish a republic had long been the impelling motive of their 
policy. An assertion of Brissot's, for example, that without the 
war France would not be a republic,^ appears at first sight to be 
significant, but this was made September 22, 1792, after the 
war was declared and the republic established, and does not 
necessarily imply that when he urged the war it was with the 
direct intention of overthrowing the monarchy. What is of 
importance is whether the arguments which he and the other 
Girondins advanced before the war was declared, were at all of 
this character. 

1 Manuel, Pierre Louis (born 1751). He was a member of the municipality, 
an orator of the Jacobins, an administrator of police, procureur of the Commune, 
and member of the Convention. He was guillotined in 1793. 

2 Roederer, Le Comte Pierre Louis. He was a member of the Constituent 
Assembly, and procureur syndic of the Department of the Seine. On the 20th 
of June, 1792, he warned the Assembly of the approach of the mob, and on the 
10th of August protected the royal family. After the 31st of May, 1793, he 
retired, only to appear after Thermidor. He died in 1835. 

3 See p. 121. 

* Cloots, Jean Baptiste du Val-de-GrS.ce, called Anacharsis. He was born 
in 1755 near Cleves, but made France his adopted country. Before 1789 he 
journeyed about Europe proclaiming philanthropic principles and called him- 
self the " orator of the human race." Made a French citizen by the Legislative 
Assembly, he was elected to the Convention, where he continued to preach his 
propaganda of a universal republic. He was guillotined with the Hebartists in 
1794. 

* Patriate Frangais, September 22, 1792. 



254 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

They were certainly accused at this time of republicanism, 
and considering the connection of Brissot, the leader of the war 
party, with the republican movement of the summer before, 
it is not to be wondered at. This accusation Brissot denied, and 
in his speech before the Jacobins on December 16 declared that 
republicanism was only a chimera brought out by the moder- 
ates to frighten worthy patriots, while the Patriate Frangais of 
December 6 published an article by Condorcet, which asserted 
that such calumnies were reiterated by newspapers in the pay 
of the ministers. At the same time, Condorcet plainly showed 
at least republican tendencies. "A true republican," he de- 
clared, "knew how to await under a constitutional monarchy 
the slow and sure effects of reason." " Every one who reflects," 
asserted a third member of the war faction, " knows that it is 
by no means to establish in all completeness the old regime nor 
on the other hand to establish a republican government that 
we are ready to fight." It is simply a question whether consti- 
tutional equality shall or shall not be established in France.^ 

This, indeed, was the motive most frequently adduced for the 
war — that France might preserve the liberty already won.^ 
What business, it was asked, had the emperor to interfere in 
the internal affairs of France? ^ Such interference was not to be 
tolerated. The country must rise in self-defense.* " It is neces- 
sary, then," declared Brissot on January 17, 1792, "to go 
straight to the point and say to the emperor: 'It is our consti- 
tution which you regard with horror, it is this which you want 
to destroy. Either give up the idea or prepare for war.' " ^ It 
is to be observed, however, that it was the constitution as 
embodying opposition to the old regime, rather than as a per- 
fect and final form of government, that Brissot was ready to 
defend so valiantly. For, at the same time that he was working 
with all his might to stir up foreign war in defense of the con- 
stitution, he was vigorously criticizing the party within the 

1 Moniteur, January 6, 1792. => Ibid., December 30, 1791. 

3 Ibid., January 19, 1792. * Patriate Franqais, December 28, 1791. 

^ Moniteur, January 19, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 255 

country which stood for "the constitution, the whole constitu- 
tion, and nothing but the constitution." ^ He was not prepared, 
however, to go further and actually assail it as a whole. 

What the Girondins did do was to assail the working of the 
constitution, as far as it concerned the executive power, and to 
pursue with constancy and determination the king's ministers. 
"The organization of the executive power," declared an article 
in the Patriote Frangais of November 14, 1791, "is the cause 
of all the disorders which affect the realm. The audacity of 
the seditious priests, the inertia of the courts, the apathy of the 
administrative corps, the insolent pretensions of the colonists, 
the malevolence of foreign powers, the twitchings, the convul- 
sions, the agonies of the body politic, all these disasters are the 
necessary result of the criminal struggle of the executive power 
against the general will." ^ And on March 6, 1792, Isnard 
declared that the powerlessness of the executive was simply the 
result of its ill-will, and demanded an inquiry as to whether 
the ministers had done all that they ought to have done, all 
that they could have done, for the execution of the law.' 

Nor did the Girondins stop with the king's ministers. Hav- 
ing attacked them, they proceeded with all their might to dis- 
credit the king himself. Brissot had declared, it will be remem- 
bered, apropos of Louis's note to the Elector of Treves, that 
the king did not understand his constitutional position when he 
wrote that he would regard him as an enemy, instead of saying 
that the nation would so regard him.^ Brissot's severe denun- 
ciation of the king for having vetoed the decree against the 
emigres will also be remembered.^ But not only had the king 
opposed the formal decree against the emigres, declared the 
Girondins, he was actually protecting them, he had not taken 
prompt steps against their assembled hordes, and when he had 
acted he had not been in earnest; moreover, the emigres knew 
it and were proceeding on the assumption that they might go 
to any length, assured that whatever steps the nation might 

^ Patriate Frangais, December 28, 1791. ^ Ibid., November 14, 1791. 
3 Ibid., March 7, 1792. * See p. 236. » See p. 230. 



256 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

take against them would be nullified by the king.^ The center 
of the counter-revolution was obviously among these emigre 
gatherings on the frontier, and the way to strike down the 
counter-revolution at a single blow was to make war on the 
emigres.^ The king might say that he wanted war, but such 
assertions were all pretense.^ But whether he wanted it or not 
it should be declared. Whereat it was naturally retorted that 
there was certainly great risk in making war under a king who 
was really not in sympathy with it, and the danger was sug- 
gested that he might thus secure the opportunity of winning 
the army to his cause. At this danger Brissot scouted. There 
was not the slightest risk, he asserted, that a successful war 
would see the king at the head of a powerful army seizing his 
ancient crown. It is to be observed, however, that Brissot's 
assurance that such a thing could not happen was based, not 
on the virtue of the king, but on the incorruptibility of the 
soldiers. In fact, Brissot declared on one occasion that treason 
was really to be desired as a means of getting rid of the poison.* 
The above remark was not made in immediate connection with 
the king, but as Brissot had in previous utterances declared him 
to be hand in glove with the emigres, and the center of the 
counter-revolution, he evidently believed him capable of trea- 
son. And when war was finally declared, he asserted that it 
alone would show who were the friends and who were the ene- 
mies of the Revolution, strengthen liberty, and unmask the 
perfidy of the court. ^ 

The above criticism does not prove a deliberate plan to over- 
throw monarchy and establish a republic; it does show, how- 
ever, that the Girondins did not hesitate before the possibility 
of such a result; that they had no abiding devotion to the 
constitution; and that if they were not ready to overthrow 
the monarchy, they were at least willing to go to the farthest 

1 Patriote Frangais, November 16 and 21, 1791; January 3, 1792; Moniteur, 
December 30, 1791. 

2 Patriote Franqais, December 20, 1791. 

* Speech of Brissot at the Jacobin Club, January 20, 1792. 

* Brissot's speech of December 30, 1791. * Dumas, Souvenirs, Hi, 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 257 

extent in discrediting it. But it is to be noted that after getting 
control of the ministry, they had less to say about the inef- 
ficiency of the executive, though this may be accounted for in 
part by the fact that they were not making so many speeches, 
but devoting themselves more to active preparation for war. 

That Brissot himself did not take an active part in the final 
debate does not alter the fact that the war was in a large meas- 
ure his work. He had written and argued and toiled in its be- 
half, and he could justly look upon it as the fulfillment of his 
efforts as leader of the war party. It was to him "a war of the 
human race against its oppressors . . . the most just, the most 
glorious war that had ever been known." ^ He little dreamed 
that he had precipitated a conflict that was to drench all Eu- 
rope with blood and leave France with narrowed boundaries 
and exhausted in strength and resources. In one sense it was, 
as he regarded it, the crowning point of his diplomatic career, 
but in its advocacy he had shown himself, both as an editor 
and as a legislator, impractical, extreme, and undiplomatic, 
and had helped to bring about conditions which were later to 
cause his own downfall. 

1 Patriate Frangais, April 21, 1792. Dumont, Souvenirs, 411, says: "Brissot 
itait si violent que je lui ai entendu j/rofoser de deguiser quelques soldats en hou- 
lans autrichiens, et de leur faire faire une attaque nocturne sur quelques villages 
frangais; a cette nouvelle, on aur ait fait une motion b. I'Assemblee legislative, et on 
aurait emportS d, un decret de guerre V enihouMasme. Sije n'en avais pas M temoin, 
je ne le croirais pas." ' 



CHAPTER X 

BRISSOT AS A MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 

Part H 

His Interests and Influence 

The period of the Legislative Assembly is notable in the 
history of the French Revolution for two things : the beginning 
of a momentous foreign war and for what was in a large part 
the outcome of that war — the overthrow of the monarchy. 
The work, however, which the Assembly was called into being 
to do, was simply to legislate for France, not to change its gov- 
ernment. Indeed, any constitutional change whatever was 
declared to be strictly outside its province. But despite the 
formal agreement of all parties to accept the constitution, there 
were many who, while throwing themselves heartily into the 
legislative work of the Assembly, were not at all disposed to 
regard the constitutional monarchy as final, and who came 
to work more or less consistently for its overthrow, and for the 
establishment of a democratic republic. Prominent among this 
number was Brissot. A study, then, of his activities during the 
Legislative Assembly, aside from his leadership of the war 
party, involves a consideration of his participation in the con- 
stitutional legislation of the Assembly and also in the destruc- 
tion of the monarchy. The Assembly had no sooner met than 
it was called upon to wrestle with knotty problems. Negroes 
and mulattoes were in revolt, the finances were disordered, and 
large numbers of priests were in a state of defiance and rebel- 
lion. The treatment of the negroes and mulattoes, together 
with the heated controversy concerning the jurisdiction of the 
Legislative Assembly over the colonies, has already been con- 
sidered in connection with Brissot's work as a humanitarian. 
It remains to consider his attitude toward the other problems. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 259 

The financial problem, unlike the colonial question, was 
clearly within the province of the Assembly, and the existing 
situation demanded that immediate attention be given to it. 
The assignats already issued had depreciated in value, the 
sale of church lands had not produced the amount confidently 
expected, and the government was in dire straits for the w^here- 
withal to pay its debts and even to carry on the administration. 
Another issue of assignats was therefore proposed. This pro- 
position Brissot did not support with his former zeal, and the 
Patriots Franqais, while protesting belief in the principle in- 
volved, urged that it be not carried too far in practice. On 
November 8, Brissot made a speech before the National As- 
sembly, of note on account both of its growing spirit of caution 
and of its democratic tendency. It would be most imprudent, 
he declared, for the government to plunge into further issues 
before ascertaining, on the one hand, the amount of the existing 
debt, and on the other, the value of the national property, on 
the security of which the assignats were issued. The govern- 
ment, he continued, should take into consideration the needs of 
different classes of its creditors, and give the preference to the 
claims arising from the smaller and less important of the sup- 
pressed offices and privileges, such as would come in general 
from the artisan class. As a further means of aiding the poor, 
he asked that the new issue include assignats of small denom- 
inations.^ In the latter contention he was successful, as the 
value of the small assignats to the rich as well as to the poor 
was generally evident, but his plan for the temporary suspen- 
sion of all payments over the sum of three thousand francs was 
voted down. 2 

While struggling with financial difficulties, the Assembly had 
also to deal with the problem of the non-juring priests. This 
refusal to take the oath to the civil constitution was regarded 

^ Discours sur la nccessite de susfendre momentanement le paiement des liqui- 
dations au-dessus de 3,000 I., avant d'emettre de nouveaux assignats et sur les 
finances en general, prononce & I'Assemblee nationale dans la seance du 2^ no- 
vembre, 1791. 

^ See Gomel, Histoire financiere de la Legislative, i, 66-67. 



260 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

as seditious, and a law was therefore proposed, the purpose of 
which was to throw upon them the responsibihty for any dis- 
turbance arising from the discussion of religious questions. In 
the debates on this law, Brissot took an active and able part. 
The larger question of liberty of the press was involved, he 
maintained, and there was grave danger that in trying to re- 
strain the seditious priests, they restrict freedom in general. To 
denounce, for instance, a priest for having "disturbed the pub- 
lic order " was to check legitimate criticism and to open the way 
to serious limitations of freedom. Only for having expressly 
provoked disobedience to the laws could a man be justly held 
accountable. Brissot also objected to the further provision, 
that, if the actions, speeches, or writings of an ecclesiastic gave 
rise to murder, fire, or pillage, he could be prosecuted. Such 
prosecution was justified, he contended, only if an immediate 
connection could be traced. In taking this stand, Brissot ap- 
pears to have been moved only by a desire for legal justice, not 
by any sympathy for the non-juring priests, as such. The 
Patriote Frangais was most rigorous in its attitude toward them, 
and there is every reason to believe that Brissot's newspaper, 
although for the time being not under his immediate direction, 
continued to represent his views. 

Thus, on November 15, the Patriote Frangais commended 
Isnard's argument for the banishment of the priests and on the 
30th of November heartily approved of the decree just passed, 
compelling the priests to take the oath immediately or run the 
risk of expulsion from the department in which they were 
resident. In taking this stand the paper was arguing on the 
assumption that the one important thing was to secure peace 
to the state and success to the Revolution, and that the reli- 
gious scruples of the non-juring priests were only a pretext un- 
worthy of consideration. "The troubles to which the seditious 
priests made France a prey," the Patriote Frangais declared, 
"are not religious troubles, they are civil dissensions. It is 
not a question of quarreling over dogma or even theology. . . . 
We have adopted unity of government; they (the non-juring 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 261 

priests) admit the existence of two authorities, we detest that 
division; we recognize the sovereignty of the people; they 
prostrate themselves before a higher sovereign." ^ But what- 
ever the legislators and the press might say to the contrary, 
it was a matter both of religion and theology, and the demand 
of allegiance to the civil constitution of the clergy was a blow 
at the heart of the orthodox Catholic and a riding rough-shod 
over the cherished beliefs of centuries. 

Besides his direct influence as a member of the Assembly, 
Brissot soon had the opportunity to exercise an indirect, but 
none the less important, influence on the progress of the Rev- 
olution through the Girondin ministry. As has been seen, he, 
in company with the other Girondins, had disapproved most 
cordially of Narbonne, not so much because of his war policy 
as because he had stolen their powder; and, by their constant 
criticism of his ministry, in which the Patriote Frangais was 
especially outspoken, had hastened his downfall. Brissot's 
precipitate attack on Delessart had further cleared the way, 
and, moreover, its success revealed the extent of the Girondin 
influence. As Dumont says, they were considered all powerful,^ 
and the king, perhaps because he feared their power and saw 
no other way to help himself, called them to oflfice.^ 

Not only in bringing about the appointment of a new minis- 
try, but also in determining its personnel the leading Girondins 
had considerable influence, for the king, having called De Graves 
to Narbonne 's place as minister of war, invited him to complete 
the ministry and De Graves turned to the party for advice.* 
Advice was precisely what they were delighted to give, and 
there was much running about and excited consultation. They 
were accustomed to meet frequently at the apartments of 
Vergniaud at political dinners, and it was there that the dis- 

' Patriate Frangais, December 28, 1791. 

^ Dumont, Souvenirs, 381. 

' "About the time that the king began to negotiate with the leaders of the 
Gironde an acute observer noticed that Brissot's Patriote Franqais adopted 
a more kindly tone in speaking of the queen." Clapham, 181. 

.* Dumont, Souvenirs, 381. 



262 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

cussion centered. In all of this discussion Brissot was especially 
active. That his influence was regarded as important is evident 
from the fact that his advice was sought directly by De Graves 
and that to him was attributed Dumouriez's appointment.^ It 
is to be noted, however, that this assertion was made a year 
later at the height of the attack of the Mountain on the Giron- 
dins, when it was to the interest of the former to make the 
Girondins responsible for Dumouriez's treason. Under such 
circumstances, it is not to be wondered at that Brissot denied 
that he had had any part in making Dumouriez minister. The 
fact remains, however, that they were closely in sympathy, on 
account of their common enthusiasm for war with Austria, and 
that Brissot in the Patriote Franqais spoke with enthusiasm of 
his appointment. A special obligation existed on Brissot's part 
toward Dumouriez if it is true, as reported, that it was on in- 
formation furnished by Dumouriez that Brissot founded his 
report against Delessart.^ 

Whatever may be Brissot's share of responsibility for Du- 
mouriez, it is significant that two at least of the new ministers 
were Brissot's close personal friends — Claviere and Roland. 
His long-standing friendship with Claviere, their collaboration 
with Mirabeau, their association in the production of works on 
America, and in the editorship of the Chronique du Mois, had 
given Brissot a high idea of the talents of Claviere and espe- 
cially of his ability as a financier, and there is no doubt that he 
used all his influence in his behalf.' He had also been on terms 
of intimacy with the Rolands and was one of the most frequent 
visitors at Madame Roland's salon. It does not appear, how- 
ever, that the first mention of Roland for minister of the interior 
was due to Brissot. It was suggested at one of the dinners at 
Vergniaud's by some one else — Madame Roland herself says 

1 Moniteur, April 6, 1793. 

2 Masson, Le Departement des affaires itrangeres, 146. 

' On the 22d of March, 1792, before the list of ministers was announced, 
Brissot took occasion in the Patriote Franqais to refer to Claviere as a person 
already talked of for the position of minister of finance, and two days later 
loudly praised his nomination. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 263 

she does not know by whom. ^ But whoever made the first sugges- 
tion, it was Brissot who took up the matter with enthusiasm 
and who, on the 21st of March, presented himself at the home 
of the Rolands with a definite proposition. It is perhaps signi- 
ficant of the influence of Madame Roland that Brissot made his 
proposition to her rather than to Monsieur Roland himself. 
At all events Madame Roland replied, with becoming modesty, 
that while Roland appreciated the difficulties and even the 
dangers of the task, he felt that his zeal was equal to the re- 
sponsibility, and that at least they would consider the matter. 
The next day Roland definitely accepted the position of min- 
ister of the interior.^ This position, according to Brissot, was 
especially delicate and difficult; it was, therefore, a source of 
satisfaction to the friends of liberty to see it confided to firm 
and pure hands. ^ Brissot's confidence was not altogether 
shared by the critics of the Girondins, especially as Roland was 
a comparatively unknown man and Brissot's influence over 
him was evidently feared. Brissot himself, in announcing the 
new ministry in the Patriote Frangais of the 20th of November, 
had felt obliged to explain who Roland was. 

Not content with having established their own adherents in 
the ministry, the Girondins wanted to oust De Graves. Their 
choice of a substitute, according to Dumont, who was con- 
sulted by Brissot oij the subject, was Du Chastellet. Such a 
choice, as Dumont points out, showed a supreme lack of deli- 
cacy, as it involved placing among the king's responsible ad- 
visers a man who had signed the first proclamation in favor of 
a republic* The unfitness of Du Chastellet seems to have been 
generally recognized and the plan fell through, 

1 Madame Roland, Memoires, i, 67, 243. See also Perroud in Lettres de 
Madame Roland, ii, 398. 

2 Madame Roland, MSmaires, i, 67-68. 

' "Brissot observa que le department de Vinthieur itait le plus delicai ei le 
plus charge dans les circonstances et que c'itait un repos d'esprit pour les amis 
de la liberie que de le voir confiS h des mains firmes et pures." Madame Roland, 
Memoires, i, 231. 

* Dumont, Souvenirs, 385. 



264 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Its failure did not deter Brissot, however, from attempting 
to exercise control over the affairs of the new ministry. He 
seems first to have undertaken to assist Dumouriez in reform- 
ing the foreign office, and to have egged him on to the dismis- 
sal of several of the heads of departments . One of the dismissed 
men, Hennin, afterward wrote with great bitterness of Brissot's 
influence in this matter, charging that it was due to him that 
a commission was appointed to examine their papers with the 
hope of finding something reprehensible; and that Brissot was 
moved thereto, not by zeal for official purity, but by an unholy 
desire to get vacant places at his disposal.^ He had a part, 
moreover, as has been seen, in the appointment of the special 
embassy, sent to secure English alliance — being responsible 
especially for getting Duroveray attached to the embassy.^ In 
one instance, at least, his zeal outran his discretion, when he 
tried to persuade Dumouriez to give a diplomatic appointment 
to Robert. Robert, Brissot urged, was a true friend of the 
Revolution, and an ardent patriot. To this Dumouriez re- 
plied that Robert was unsuited for the position, because of lack 
of dignity in personal appearance. To use Dumouriez's own 
language, he was as broad as he was high, and he (Dumouriez) 
would not disgrace himself by sending anywhere such a little 
runt. To this objection Brissot could only reiterate that 
"Robert had an excellent honest heart," but when Dumouriez 
told him that what Robert aimed at was the ambassadorship 
to Constantinople, he owned that he had not realized the extent 
of Robert's pretensions and admitted that Dumouriez was 
right in his refusal. Through this incident Brissot learned some- 
thing of the trials of a man thought to possess influence, for he 
had to face an attack from Robert, who charged him with bad 
faith in failing to keep a promise of assistance.^ 

In another important instance Brissot and his friends at- 

* Masson, Le Departement des affaires etrangeres pendant la revolution, 148, 
where the complaint of Hennin to the ministry dated 6th Thermidor, year V, 
is quoted. The length of time that elapsed may affect the validity of the 
testimony. 

* See pp. 235, 250. ' Madame Roland, MSmoires, ii, 176-78. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 265 

tempted to dictate to Dumouriez. This was in demanding the 
dismissal of Bonne-Carrere, whom Dumouriez had established 
as chief director in the department of foreign affairs. Reports 
had been spread abroad concerning a large sum of money, of 
which Bonne-Carrere was in possession, and which pointed to 
corruption in his office. On the basis of this report Gensonne, 
Roland, and Brissot tried to induce Dumouriez to dismiss 
Bonne-Carrere, on the ground that the entire ministry would 
suffer in reputation. But Dumouriez was obstinate, and not 
only refused, but also seemed to have taken lasting offense at 
such interference.^ 

Over Roland the Girondin influence was greater and more 
lasting. In the case of Brissot, indeed, it seems to have been 
not mere influence but actual dictation. That he was recog- 
nized as a power behind the ministry as a whole, there is no 
doubt. Peltier says Brissot reigned for three months, ^ and ac- 
cording to Dumont he enjoyed so great an influence that it 
turned his head; "he no longer spoke but in oracles, and could 
not bear contradiction." ^ 

The responsibility which Brissot felt for the government, 
especially after the war had begun, also affected his policy. 
His attitude on the subject of discipline in the army, for ex- 
ample, was entirely changed. Not many months before, he had 
declared that a thorough gradation in rank was unnecessary, 
that much discipline was superfluous, and that under certain 
conditions soldiers might even argue with their superiors.^ But 
now, when the subject was discussed he spoke after an entirely 
different fashion. "What," he asked, "is the first means by 
which liberty can be made to triumph over the coalition of 
slaves armed against it? It is discipline. What is the second 
means? It is discipline. What is the third? It is discipline." ^ 
Again, when the subject of providing for war expenses was dis- 
cussed, he gave his cordial support to Vergniaud in favor of a 

^ Madame Roland, Memoires, i, 247-48. 

2 Peltier, Histoire du 10 acrdt, i, 63. ' Dumont, Souvenirs, 404. 

* Patriate Frangais, April 22, 1791. See p. 158. ^ Ibid.. June 3, 1792. 



266 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

grant of six millions to be used for the expenses of the depart- 
ment of foreign affairs, and denounced as unworthy the objec- 
tion that such a sum might be misused — an objection which, 
had Brissot been in the opposition, he would surely have made 
himseK.^ 

The commanding influence which he was felt to exert nat- 
urally made him the subject of attacks from all sides. That 
he was inconsistent for one thing did not escape his opponents. 
They seized upon various evidences of it and made them the 
basis of many an arraignment. Radical theories propounded 
by him in his early youth, chance remarks showing possible 
sympathy with the government of the old regime, his present 
connection with a government which he had formerly assailed, 
were all seized upon as proofs that he was a man unworthy of 
confidence and open to suspicion of treason to the cause of the 
Revolution. 

One of the most bitter of these assaults was made through the 
columns of the Journal de Paris. The writer, evidently taking 
advantage of the fear that the attack on the status of the mulat- 
toes might lead to an attack on slavery itself, seized upon the 
occasion to warn the public that it needed to be upon its guard 
against those who would assail the sacred right of property, 
notably against Brissot. That Brissot was especially dangerous 
was evident, he declared, from his early writings, and in proof 
of his assertions he proceeded to quote from Brissot's Recher- 
ches philosophiques sur la 'propriStS et le vol.^ Moreover, any 
man who talked as Brissot did about the "odious distinctions 
between rich and poor" was to be regarded with suspicion. 
To this attack Brissot responded promptly and with spirit.' 
The rascality of the writer, he declared, was only too evident, 
and showed itself in four ways: (1) by applying to a civil state 
what he had said of a state of nature; (2) by leaving out, or 
changing, the meaning of citations which showed that far 
from justifying theft, he condemned it; (3) by arguing from a 

1 Patriote Frangais, March 16, 1792. * See p. 7. 

' Patriote Frangais, March 8, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 267 

pamphlet printed in 1778,^ and little known, that in 1792 he 
wished to overturn society; (4) by printing this article at a 
moment when evil-intentioned persons were alarming the 
French people about an alleged attack on the rights of prop- 
erty. His real position, Brissot declared, was evident from 
such a citation as this — a citation in which, by the way, he 
frankly admitted that he did not consider property a natural 
right. "Doubtless it is necessary that he who has worked en- 
joy the fruit of his work; without that reward for the cultivator, 
no harvests, no wealth, no commerce. Let us then defend and 
protect civil property, but let us not say it is founded in nat- 
ural rights: under the pretext that it is a sacred right let us 
not outrage nature; let us not punish thieves so cruelly." In 
concluding his defense, Brissot declared with some venom that 
such articles as he was answering emanated from opponents 
of the Revolution and were paid for by the agents of the 
executive power. 

This last shot naturally drew fire. His antagonist hotly 
denied that he had received any money from the executive 
power; reiterated his charge that Brissot did mean his observa- 
tions on property to apply to the civil state; pointed out that 
Brissot contradicted himseK as to the date of the publication 
of his pamphlet on theft, having said in one place that it ap- 
peared in 1778, andjn another in 1780; declared that in any 
ease the pamphlet was not the work of Brissot's early youth, 
as in 1778 to 1780 he must have been from thirty-four to 
thirty-six years of age,^ and closed by answering Brissot's 
complaint that the anonymous writer had chosen a time of 
alarm for property rights to make his attack by the pertinent 
query: "In the name of Heaven, M. Brissot, at what time, 
then, would you invoke the respect due to property?" ' 

Before this controversy was closed, Brissot was assailed on 

1 Brissot in his address had given the date 1778. In this he was mistaken; 
1780 was the correct date. 

2 In this he was mistaken. Brissot was bom in 1754. 
' Journal de Paris, March 16, 1792. 



268 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the opposite side, on this occasion not for being too revolu- 
tionary, but for not being revolutionary enough. In the issue 
of March 13 of the Journal de Paris a writer who signed him- 
seK "F. D. P." alleged that Brissot in an essay crowned by 
the Academy of Chalons, in 1780, had shown himself to be the 
toady of the ministry, the apologist of the police, the friend of 
kings in general, and of Louis XVI in particular, and above 
all, the enemy of revolution. These allegations Brissot promptly 
and hotly denied, at the same time defying the writer to sign 
his name and to furnish proof of his insinuations that he had 
been in the service of the police.^ In response the writer, who 
proved to be Pange,^ accepted the defiance, at least to the ex- 
tent of repeating his accusations over his signature;^ and when 
Brissot again demanded proofs that he had been in the service 
of the police,^ he only answered by inquiring why Brissot was 
so violent about mere insinuations, thereby himself insinuating 
that Brissot must have a guilty conscience in seeing accusation 
where none was actually made.^ At all events, Pange seems to 
have offered no proof, and the matter was apparently dropped. 
The success of the Girondins in bringing on the war gave a 
new turn to the accusations against Brissot. They ceased to 
concern themselves with the utterances of his youth and turned 
upon his present policy and purpose. It was charged that he 
was sold to the court, and was working for war in order to sup- 
port royalty ® and establish a protectorate. The latter charge 
was made with great force at the Jacobin Club by Robespierre 
and Merlin of Thionville, who seized the moment of the victory 
of the war party for impugning their motives. The Girondins, 
they declared, were using their influence over the court and 
the ministry as false patriots and had formed a conspiracy, 
with the aid of Lafayette and Narbonne, to overturn the 

1 Patriate Frangais, March 16, 1792. 

2 Pange, Marie Frangois Denis Thomas de (bom 1764; died 1796), be- 
longed to an old family connected with the administration of the finances. He 
collaborated in the publication of various newspapers during the Revolution. 

' Journal de Paris, March 18, 1792. ^ Patriate Frangais, March 20, 1792. 
5 Jaurnal de Paris, March 25, 1792. ^ L'Ami du Peuple, April 24, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 269 

monarchy and establish themselves in power. They were base 
intriguers, indifferent to the cause of the people. The precise 
object of their endeavors varied with circumstances, but the 
public might rest assured of one thing, it was only for their 
own interest that they were working.^ 

These accusations Brissot answered as follows. It could not 
be alleged against him, he began, that he had not been true to 
the cause of the people because he had not attended the meet- 
ings of the Jacobin Club with regularity. His absence was due 
to precisely the contrary reason, because he had been true to 
the cause of the people and as their representative had been 
doing his duty at the Legislative Assembly, where night ses- 
sions prevented his attendance at the Jacobin Club. More- 
over, he had never ceased to defend the cause of the people and 
to attack their enemies in his newspaper. Then, turning to the 
specific points of attack, he disavowed the great influence which 
had been attributed to him in the formation and direction of 
the ministry, but at the same time stoutly maintained that it 
was a patriotic ministry, in whose guidance he would be proud 
to have a part. At this point he was interrupted by Des- 
moulins who by calls of "Coquin!" "Coquin!" precipitated 
a scene of great disorder. When the semblance of order was 
finally restored, Brissot continued his defense. He denied that 
he was striving to overturn royalty and to establish a pro- 
tectorate, repudiated any intimacy either with Lafayette or 
Narbonne, declared that he had not even seen Lafayette 
since the 23d of June, 1791, and that if they were looking for a 
new Cromwell, they would not select him in a man of so little 
character as Lafayette. Such accusations should be signed 
and backed up with proofs. Then, turning to the charge 
against Condorcet, whose name had been especially coupled 
with his, and who was absent on account of illness, he launched 
into a panegyric of his friend,^ and then closed his speech with 

' Aulard, Les Jacobins, iii, 518-19. 

* " Enfin il a fini par un ■panegyrique de M. le marquis de Condorcet, panigy- 
rique qui a fait demander a plusieurs membres de la Societe si M. de marquis de 



270 BEISSOT DE WARVILLE 

a fierce attack on Robespierre. He would not imitate his ad- 
versaries in calumny, he declared; he would not dwell on the 
report that they were paid for their attacks or that they main- 
tained a secret committee by which to influence the Jacobins, 
but he would say that whether they wanted civil war or not 
they were following precisely the same line of action as those 
who did. As for himself he demanded no redress: having re- 
futed the denunciations made against him, he was content to 
pay no further attention to them, and therefore moved that 
the Club proceed to the next order of business. 

Brissot's hot-headed friend, Guadet, was not content, how- 
ever, to let the affair drop. Brissot had scarcely finished before 
he rushed to the tribune with a demand that the Club take 
some definite action on these calumnies, at the same time pay- 
ing his compliments to Robespierre in terms which provoked a 
scene of wild disorder, and a renewal of the accusations on both 
sides, till the lateness of the hour made necessary an adjourn- 
ment and put a temporary end to their incriminations.^ Far 
from letting the matter rest, Brissot continued his attack on 
Robespierre in the Pairiote Frangais. "The public is divided," 
he wrote, "between three opinions concerning Robespierre. 
Some believe him a madman, others attribute his conduct to 
wounded vanity, others believe it can be explained only by a 
reference to the civil list. " ^ Brissot and Guadet also printed 
their speeches. This gave rise to further difficulty, for when the 
subject was again taken up at the Jacobin Club, Robespierre 
declared that Brissot and Guadet had not printed their speeches 
as they had delivered them. He especially objected to the 
remarks in the preface of Brissot's speech in which Brissot 

Condorcet Stait mort, tant on etait Sloigne de croire qiion pHt purler d'un homme 
vivant avec des elogues aussi exageres." Delacroix, "U Intrigue devoilee ou 
Robespierre vengS des outrages et des calomnies des ambitieux," Annates re- 
volutionnaires, i, 339. (April, 1908.) 

1 Les Jacobins, iii, 526-36. Note also the account given by the Revolutions 
de Paris, April 21-28, 1792. This paper took a fairly judicial attitude toward 
the affair, but in the main supported Brissot. 

2 Patriate Frangais, April 28, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 271 

referred to his (Robespierre's) adherents in the gallery. The 
result was another extremely stormy session, in the course of 
which Robespierre threatened to withdraw from the Club en- 
tirely, unless they would permit him to defend himself from 
the libels directed against him. After a prolonged scene of dis- 
order, he finally won a slight victory, for although the Club 
did not pass any decree of expulsion, he did succeed in obtain- 
ing a decree that the Club did not recognize these objectionable 
allusions and that an address to that effect be sent to the af- 
filiated societies. Brissot and his adherents were, therefore, 
at least partially discredited,^ and a step was taken in the direc- 
tion of their final defeat the following year. 

They were still further discredited by their failure to achieve 
victories on the frontier. They had been so active in forcing a 
declaration of war, and so ready in their promise of quick and 
easy success, that their critics soon became loud in their de- 
mands for an explanation. Results, and immediate results, 
were demanded, and the failure to produce them was sufficient, 
it was urged, to give rise to the gravest suspicions. As Brissot 
had been a leader of the war party, it was about him that these 
suspicions naturally centered. "When we were discussing the 
great question of the war, what did M. Brissot say ? " asked the 
Revolutions de Paris. "What answer did he make to his op- 
ponents? He saw only Coblenz, desired to destroy Coblenz, 
and claimed that if Coblenz were destroyed the Revolution 
would be accomplished. M. Brissot needed a campaign of only 
fifteen days to pacify Europe and avenge France; everything 
was ready, everything prepared for his vast undertaking. It 
is now a month since the war was declared; we have not taken 
a step, our armies have remained stationary." The writer 
then went on to paint in somber colors the general situation: 
" An army in frightful condition, in want of food and munitions, 
the frontiers undefended, the enemies of the revolution pro- 

^ Aulard, Les Jacobins, in, 548. See also Journal des debats de la societe des 
amis de la constitution, seance du lundi, April 30, 1792. See the defense of 
Robespierre by Marat in L'Ami du Peuple, May 3, 1792. 



272 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

tected by the courts, the condition of the army not reported by 
its generals." Was all this, he asked, the result of chance or 
conspiracy ? ^ In any case, the Revolutions de Paris continued, 
they certainly owed the public an explanation of a policy that 
was even more tortuous and mysterious than that of Duport,^ 
and Delessart, Narbonne, Duportail,^ and Montmorin.* 

The reply of Brissot and the other Girondins was vigorous 
and effective. That they were traitors they indignantly denied, 
but there did exist danger of treason and that danger was to be 
found in the counselors by whom the king was surrounded. It 
was these men who constituted a veritable "Austrian Com- 
mittee," sympathizing with Austria and working in its inter- 
ests. Even before the war had been declared, Brissot had 
attacked several of the former members of the ministry under 
this name, asserting that though they had been ejected from 
oflSce and the party which they represented deposed from 
power, they still continued their machinations.^ 

The Girondins now instituted a more specific and violent 
attack, which, while directed nominally against the ex-min- 
isters, helped to discredit royalty itself. On the 23d of May, 
Gensonne opened the fusillade by denouncing the "Commit- 
tee" before the Assembly. He was followed by Brissot, who, 
in a scathing arraignment, declared that the "Austrian Com- 

1 Revolutions de Paris, May 12-19, 1792. 

2 Marguerite Louis Frangois Duport-Dutertre was born in Paris in 1754. 
An advocate of parlement under the old regime, he was chosen a member of the 
electoral assembly of Paris in 1789, and later became substitute for the pro- 
ciireur-general of the Commune. From November, 1790, to March, 1792, he 
was minister of justice. He was guillotined in November, 1793. 

^ Duportail, minister of war under Louis XVI. He kept his post till 1792, 
but was many times called to the bar of the Legislative Assembly to answer ac- 
cusations made against him; was finally obliged to resign and to hide in order 
to escape imprisonment. He died in 1802. 

^ Armand Marc, Comte de Montmorin, was born in Auvergne in 1745. 
Under the old regime he was sent as ambassador to Madrid and in 1787 became 
minister for foreign affairs, which oflSce he continued to hold with some inter- 
ruptions till October, 1791. After his resignation he remained an adviser of 
Louis XVI. He lost his life in the massacres of September. 

* Patriate Franqais, March 15, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 273 

mittee" was characterized by "absolute devotion to what is 
called royal prerogative; by absolute devotion to Austria, by 
a policy of no alliance with Prussia or England, no matter how 
advantageous such an alliance might be; by indulgence to the 
real rebel emigres; and by opposition to the war against the 
House of Austria after having provoked it." Among the active 
members of the committee he named the former ministers, Du- 
port and Bertrand de Moleville.^ Duport, he declared, used 
his official position to sacrifice the constitution to the executive 
power, while Bertrand disorganized the navy and hindered 
the pacification of the colonies with the purpose of keeping 
them under the control of the king. But the heart and soul 
of the "Austrian Committee" was Montmorin. As proof of 
Montmorin's loyalty to the king, rather than to the constitu- 
tion, Brissot produced a letter to Noailles,^ dated August 3, 
1791, in which he said that the best men of the Assembly were 
acting in concert with the true servants of the king, in order to 
sustain the monarchy and restore to His Majesty the powers 
which are necessary if he were to govern. It was stated further 
that in this same letter he had declared that "within fifteen 
days there would be an end to the truly deplorable state of the 
royal family." As a further proof of Bertrand's antagonism 
to the Revolution, Brissot produced another letter, in this case 
written by an agent ^of the government, in which he spoke of 

^ Antoine Frangois Bertrand de Moleville was born at Toulouse in 1744. An 
intendant of Brittany under the old regime, he became minister of marine in 
1789, which office he held till March, 1792. He fled to England during the 
Terror, returned to France at the Restoration, and died in 18 18. He and Brissot 
had already crossed swords, as is evident from the following: " Lettre de M. 
Bertrand de Moleville, minister de la marine, a Louis XVI au sujet de voies et 
moyens a employer pour diriger des poursuites contre le rcdacteur et Vimprimeur 
de Vexccrable feuille, le Patriate Frangais, pour son article du dimanche pre- 
cedent." In Troisicme recueil des pieces deposees a la Commission extraor- 
dinaire des douze, i, 58. Bertrand de Moleville's Histoire de la Revolution, vii, 
54, gives the text of the letter and the answer of Louis XVI. Tuetey, iv, 128. 

2 Emmanuel Marie Louis, Marquis de Noailles, was born at Paris in 1743, 
and died in 1822. After a career in the army he turned to diplomacy and 
in 1791 was sent as ambassador to Vienna. He was under suspicion by the 
Assembly for his sympathy with the cause of the king. 



274 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

being permitted by Bertrand to serve the Count d'Artois. 
Bertrand, Brissot continued, was devoted not only to the king, 
but to the House of Austria, and had shown his devotion by 
concealing dispatches and by favoring the emigres, and finally, 
with his retirement from the ministry he had not ceased his 
machinations, but was still working in behalf of Austria. In 
view of these facts, action, Brissot declared, should be taken. 
He therefore concluded by demanding that Montmorin should 
be impeached and that an investigation should be made im- 
mediately of the conduct of Duport and Bertrand. In spite of 
his efforts Brissot was not successful, for although his speech 
was ordered printed and copies sent to various committees, his 
motion was not carried.^ 

Within a few days Bertrand and Montmorin presented able 
memoirs to the Assembly, setting forth their defense. In an- 
swer to the charge that he had hindered the pacification of the 
colonies, Bertrand offered to produce his correspondence, and 
reminded the Assembly that every communication which he 
had received on the subject he had already submitted to them, 
and declared that an examination of the dates of the measures 
voted and of their execution would be a convincing argument 
that he had used all possible haste. His alleged willful dis- 
organization of the navy he absolutely denied; the state of the 
navy could be fully accounted for without resorting to allega- 
tions of treason. 2 

^ Discours sur la denonciations contre le comite autrichicn et conire M. Mont- 
morin. Les Revolutions de Paris, May 19-26, in commenting upon this speech, 
condemned Brissot bitterly for saying, "qu'on a reconnu V influence du comite 
Autrichien dans les Svenemens qui ont recemment afflige la France, dans cette op- 
position d'un certain parti a la guerre offensive contre I'Autriche, dans les lenteurs 
des prcparatifs de guerre, dans la communication du plan d'attaque, dans les 
mefiances semees entre les generaux et les ministres." He could hardly have been 
acting in good faith, Les Revolutions declared, when he wrote these lines. The 
Venetian ambassador wrote as follows: "Li due discorsi non furono che due 
lunghe e vaghe declamazioni si promisero delle prove, ma niuna se ne portb, e per- 
fino li piu pervenvti trovarono una tale debolezza nelli assunti, e vanita nei ragiona- 
menti, che si formo anzi nel comune una prevenzione del contrario di quanta s'l'n- 
tendeva confermare." Kovalevsky, Dispacci degli ambasciatori veneti, 449. 

* Observations adressees a I'Assemblie nationale sur les discours prononch 
par Mm. GensonnS et Brissot. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 275 

Montmorin in making his defense contended that Brissot 
had been guilty of unfair play in his attack, in that his charges 
were based on extracts from letters which would present a dif- 
ferent view were the whole letter given, a contention which he 
proceeded to support by giving the letters in full. The allusion 
to a concerted action between the servants of the king and the 
best members of the Assembly referred to the conferences be- 
tween the ministers and the Assembly. As for the phrase, 
"servants of the king," that was a mere form of words sanc- 
tioned even in England. The deplorable condition of the royal 
family, soon to cease, had reference to the time of suspense 
when the constitution was under revision. His desire, Mont- 
morin declared, was not to support the king against any con- 
stitution, but only against a constitution which left him with 
insufficient power. The other letter, regarding the relations of 
the agent of the French government with the Count d'Artois, 
would, he admitted, be a damaging piece of evidence were it not 
known that it concerned a permission given in 1789, and that 
immediately after the receipt of the letter the writer was re- 
moved from his position. As for his relations with Austria, 
Montmorin declared that far from trying to bring about war 
with her he had done all he could to keep the peace, and, for 
reasons of principle, because he believed in an Austrian alli- 
ance. But that he had concealed dispatches or favored the 
emigres, or that since his resignation in October, 1791, he had 
had any part in public affairs, he emphatically denied.^ 

While the Girondins were attacking the former ministers of 

^ Observations de M. de Montmorin adressSes d VAssenihlee nationale sur les 
discours prononces par Mm. Gensonne et Brissot dans la seance du 23 mai, 
1792. 

The following declaration made by one Petit in the Archives nationales, C 
218, 160, 118, shows how influence might be brought to bear from the galleries: 
" Que le jour ou M. Brissot, depvte a VAssennhlee nationale, a parte sur la comiU 
autrichien les d'Goidet et Benzelin, avoient amenSs dans les tribunes de I'As- 
semblee trente-cinq personnes, dont le premier douze, et le second vingt-trois, a 
chacun desquelles ils avoient paye trois livres pour cabaler contre M. Brissot, ap- 
plauder a tout ce qui serait dit en faveur du Roi et du pouvoir executif et dis- 
aprouver tout ce qui seroit contre." 



276 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the king, they were also striving with all their might, so their 
enemies declared, to discredit the king and queen directly, and 
thus to overthrow the monarchy, and to establish a republic. 
This had been Brissot's motive, it was alleged, in urging for- 
eign war, and, according to persistent report, he had for a 
month been seeking the same end by means of a conspiracy. A 
part of the plan, if a letter credited to the Count de Fersen is 
to be believed, was a denunciation of the queen. The plot was 
concocted at a supper at Condorcet's and the conspirators in- 
cluded Lafayette, Petion, Brissot, the Abbe Sieyes, and Nar- 
bonne. Condorcet drew up the arraignment of the queen. 
Nineteen points there were, of which the most damning was 
that she had an understanding with the emperor and M. Deles- 
sart, with the purpose of stirring up foreign powers to attack 
France. In view of such a condition of affairs, it was proposed 
to get possession of her person, separate her from the king and 
from her son; then to suspend the king from his functions as an 
accomplice to the intriguers, on the ground that he could not 
be trusted to direct the operations of the army against the 
powers who were making war in his behalf; and, finally, to en- 
trust the education of the dauphin to proper hands. ^ Rumors of 
this plot having got abroad, they were obliged to abandon it, 
temporarily, at least. While Fersen may have been mistaken 
in the definiteness of the schemes in question, he was not the 
only one who was confident of the existence of a republican 
conspiracy. Salomon speaks of a mysterious plot, whose 
leaders, who included Sieyes, Brissot, Condorcet, and Cla- 
viere, were accustomed to meet, now at Madame Helvetius's 
on the Versailles road, now at the home of a woman named 
D'Odun.2 Early in March the Ami du Roi gave what claimed 
to be authentic information of a secret committee, composed of 

^ Le Comte Axel de Fersen au Roi de Suede Gustave, Bruxelles, le 24 mai 
(1792). Feuillet de Conches, Louis XVI, v, 360. The authenticity of some of 
Feuillet de Conches's material is very doubtful, but that contained in the latter 
volumes (including the 5th) is more reliable than that in the earlier volumes. 
See Lord Acton, Lectures, 364. 

2 Salomon, Correspondance, 386, quoted in Cahn, Condorcet, 322. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 277 

ardent republicans, inspired by Brissot and Condorcet, who 
were scheming an atrocious war against the friends of the king 
and of the monarchy. The Venetian ambassador, writing home 
in February, declared that the dominant party was working 
hard to bring about a public schism between the Assembly and 
the king, with the expectation that the king would either lose 
public confidence, or, that, frightened by the opposition, he 
would take flight and leave the power to the Assembly.^ Du- 
mont likewise afiirms that the Girondins were working for the 
overthrow of monarchy,^ and Mallet du Pan, in April, 1792, 
declares specifically that Condorcet, Brissot, and Sieyes had 
determined to dethrone the king.^ 

Whatever may have been the temper of these secret meetings, 
and however republican the real desires of the Girondins, they 
were not ready to avow themselves openly, and on May 10, 
Brissot, in a long editorial in the Patriote Frangais, categori- 
cally denied the existence of a republican faction, France or 
rather the capital, he declared, was divided into three parties, 
excluding the aristocrats and the counter-revolutionists. These 
three parties were called the enrages, the patriots and the 
moderates. None of them desired a republic, they were all 
under the banner of the constitution, they all had sworn to 
maintain the constitution, they all invoked the constitution, 
they all talked of liberty and equality, they all spoke the same 
language. There were, however, radical differences among 
them, and these he proceeded to state. The enrages recognized 
only the declaration of rights, swore only by that, though ap- 
parently they sustained the constitution. They wished to bring 
the constitution in all its parts into harmony with the declara- 
tion of rights; they were always talking of the sovereignty of 
the people because by this means they hoped to secure a domi- 
nating influence; and, not being able to hope for anything 
while order was maintained, they propagated every kind of 
doctrine calculated to produce disorder. 

* Kovalevsky, Ambascialori veneti, 399. * Dumont, Souvenirs, 391. 

' Mallet du Pan, M^oires, i, 260. 



278 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The moderates, on the other hand, put the constitution 
above the declaration of rights. They wanted at all costs the 
maintenance of property. They looked upon the people as 
incapable of perfection and therefore to be kept enchained by 
the law forever, because they were incapable of being guided 
by reason. They never spoke of equality, but of the consti- 
tution. 

The patriots were to be distinguished both from the enrages 
and from the moderates. They revered the declaration of rights, 
but at the same time they also wanted the constitution revered 
in every respect. They loved the people, but they did not flatter 
them; they loved the people, but they wanted the people to 
obey the law and to be punished when they did not obey it. 
Like the moderates they wanted peace and the maintenance 
of property; they wanted the reign of law, but they wanted 
also and first of all the reign of reason. But unlike the enrages 
and the moderates, they were not instruments in the hands of 
the executive power. In short, the three parties were to be 
characterized thus: "Patriot, friend of the people, friend of the 
constitution; Moderate, false friend of the constitution, enemy 
of the people; Enrage, false friend of the people, enemy of the 
constitution." According to these characteristics, he con- 
cluded, it was easy to see which party reasonable men ought 
to prefer.^ 

But whatever their ultimate purpose, the Girondins were 
determined, so long as the king remained on the throne, to 
limit his power. They accordingly called for the dismissal of 
the king's guard, on the ground that such action was demanded 
for the "maintenance of the constitution, the security of the 
realm, and even for the safety of the king himself." They also 
demanded the establishment of a camp of federSs for the pro- 
tection of the Assembly, and a decree for the deportation of 
the non-juring priests — all of which they successfully carried 

1 Patriate Frangais, May 10, 1792. It was apparently with the express 
purpose of combating this point of view that Robespierre established the 
Defenseur de la Constitution. Aulard, Histoire politique, 182. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 279 

through, and all of which Brissot supported in his newspaper.^ 
These measures the Girondins considered essential to their own 
authority, and since they had good reason to fear the king's 
veto, they used all means at their command to prevent it. 

Madame Roland seconded their efforts and wrote an in- 
solent letter to the king, — in her husband's name, of course, 
— in which she insisted that he give his consent to the two 
decrees.^ What followed is well known: the indignation of the 
king and queen; the dismissal of Servan, Claviere, and Roland, 
on the advice of Dumouriez; the king's subsequent refusal, 
despite Dumouriez's persuasions, to conciliate popular opinion 
by signing the decrees, and the resignation of Dumouriez. 

With the conduct of Dumouriez in turning against them the 
Brissotins were naturally highly indignant. In their opinion 
he was nothing less than a "vile intriguer." "It is a trying 
thing," wrote Brissot in his journal, "for a man who has any 
delicacy, for a patriot who realizes how necessary union is for 
the prosperity of our armies, to raise the mask which covered 
the perfidy of a minister whom he esteemed . . . the only thing 
with which I have to reproach myself is not to have done it 
sooner. You can guess that I am speaking of the fellow, 
Dumouriez, who, with his protestations of patriotism, good 
behavior in the Vendee, and the reputation of some military 
talent, succeeded in seducing the patriots and in getting himself 
called by the people to the ministry." ^ 

It was evident from his defense that Brissot was troubled 
lest his own reputation might suffer because of his relations to 
Dumouriez. He accordingly wrote an open letter to Dumouriez, 
published in the Patriate Frangais, of June 16, the main purpose 
of which was to justify himself. His only object, he declared, 
was to be useful to his country and he had supported Dumouriez 
merely as a means to that end; but his eyes ought to have been 

1 Patriate Frangais. May 30, 31, June 5, 7. 12, 1792. 

^ Memoires de Madame Roland, i, 241. The king had accepted the decree 
providing for the dismissal of his guard. 
' Patriate Frangais, June 14, 1792. 



280 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

opened, if only by Dumouriez's persistence in choosing such 
a man as Bonne-Carrere.^ 

For his disturbance of mind Brissot seems to have had good 
reason, for ugly insinuations were being made against him. 
Certain persons were accused, in the aristocratic newspapers 
and in placards, of having received, without legitimate reason, 
large sums of money. These accusations, Brissot declared in 
his newspaper of June 17, while they mentioned no names, were 
obviously directed against him and his friends, and were in- 
spired by Dumouriez, who knew they were false. Bonne- 
Carrere ^ meanwhile did not propose to let Brissot's attack on 
him go unanswered. According to his account, instead of hav- 
ing received money, Brissot was incensed because he had not, 
his whole ground of resentment against Dumouriez being that 
the latter had refused to share with him a large sum of money 
voted for secret expenses. This rumor, set afloat by Bonne- 
Carrere, is absolutely without foundation. It served, however, 
to widen the breach between Dumouriez and Brissot. 

Meanwhile, the breach with the king was rapidly approach- 
ing a crisis. His attitude toward the decrees against the priests 
and the camp of Jederh was no secret, although the formal an- 
nouncement of his veto was not made till June 19. The danger 
was grave, as Brissot had already pointed out. "It is no 
longer possible," he wrote in the Patriote Frangais of June 18, 
"to conceal the dangers into which the intriguers of the court 
precipitate the state; continued indifference would no longer 
be weakness, it would be treason. And the National Assembly, 

^ Premiere leitre de Brissot a Dumouriez, Patriote Frangais, June 16, 1792. 

2 Bonne-Carrere already bore a grudge against Brissot, because the latter 
had opposed his appointment as director general of foreign affairs. (See p. 265; 
also Madame Roland, Mhnoires, i, 246-48; also Patriote Frangais, June 16, 
1792; April 20, 1793.) Bonne-Carrere, says Brissot, became his enemy because 
he (Brissot) had exposed one of his proteges as a traitor. (Masson, Un Diplo- 
mat, 199.) At all events, on August 10, Brissot demanded that seals be placed 
on Bonne-Carrere's papers, and declared that he was not a fit person to hold 
the post to which he had been assigned, — that of ambassador to the United 
States. Seals were accordingly placed on his papers, and his appointment was 
revoked. {Moniteur, August 12, 1792.) 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 281 

which can still save the country if it does act, will destroy it if 
it hesitates." While the Assembly still hesitated the people 
acted. The result was the events of June 20, when a huge 
mob forced its way into the Assembly, presented a petition 
protesting against the dismissal of the king's ministers and 
demanding that some action be taken against him, and then 
invaded the Tuileries and insulted the king and queen. 

In the actual events of the day Brissot seems to have taken 
no part. Precisely to what extent he and the other Girondins 
were responsible for instigating the movement is a matter of 
doubt. According to the police commissioner, Sergent-Mar- 
Qeau, the whole affair had been planned in the salon of Madame 
Roland, and Brissot, Gensonne, and Guadet were impli- 
cated.^ Moreover, at the trial of the Girondins Chabot swore 
that Brissot had declared that the 20th of June had produced 
the effect intended. ^ But this evidence in both cases is from 
an unfriendly point of view and lacks corroboration. Brissot's 
previous attitude, however, shows that he had not shrunk from 
the possibility of a popular rising. As has been pointed out by 
M. Aulard, it was he who helped to arm the people of Paris 
with pikes.^ The Patriote Franqais of October 26, 1791, gave 
the design of a pike, and on the 10th of February, 1792, it ex- 
plained that the use of the pike was to hold the court to its 
duty. "While the enemies of the people were making prepara- 
tions against them," it declared, "the people also made their 
preparations. Pikes began the revolution, pikes will finish it." 
As to the actual events of the day, the Patriote Franqais ap- 
proved heartily of the original purpose of the demonstration, 
and expressed no regret at the outcome, nor did it show any 
sympathy with the king and queen in their distressing situa- 

1 Notice historique sur les Svenements du 10 aout, 1792, et des W et 21 juin 
precedents, par Sergent-MarQeau. Revue rStrospective, seconde serie, in, 342. 
Quoted in Bire, La LSgende des Girondins, 73. In his deposition made June 21, 
Sergent does not mention Brissot. See The Uprising of June 20, 1792, by L. B. 
Pfeififer. 

^ Moniteur, October 27, 1793, supplement, p. x. 

^ Les Orateurs de la Legislative, i, 236. 



282 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

tion; and when Petion was suspended for his failure to prevent 
the uprising, it upheld the Assembly in quashing the suspen- 
sion.^ On the whole, it was comparatively mild in its expres- 
sions of approval, and was inclined to treat the afiFair lightly, 
comparing it to a shower which would serve to cool the air. 
On July 6, Brissot commented on the events of June 20 at 
some length. He expressed himself with caution, however; in- 
deed, his main purpose seemed to be not to commit himself 
unreservedly to either side. He spoke, for instance, of the 
people as desiring liberty, but also law; as recognizing their 
duties as well as their rights; at the same time as led into ex- 
cess by unworthy agitators. In the case of the national guard, 
there was the spirit of the rank and file to be commended, but 
quite another spirit among the officers was to be condemned. 
As for the king, he wanted the constitution, but was not sin- 
cerely reconciled with the Revolution, ^ 

In taking this haKway position, Brissot but represented the 
general spirit of the Girondins. They had gained nothing from 
the events of June 20; instead of increasing their chances of a 
return to power under the monarchy, they had only prepared 
the way for the overthrow of the monarchy. They vacillated 
in regard to decisive action, however, but at the same time con- 
tinued to attack the king. In these attacks Brissot both took 
an active part himself and also sustained the onslaughts of his 
friends. For example, he commended Vergniaud's speech of 
July 3, in which that famous orator struck so heavily at the 
king. "One passage was especially admired," Brissot wrote,' 
"that in which he traced the course which an anti-revolution- 
ary king might follow who wanted to destroy the constitution 
by means of the constitution itself. Every member easily made 
the application, and the only thing with which M, Cambon re- 
proached the orator was that he put in hypothesis what exists 
in reality." 

Their attack on the king did not restrain the Girondins from 

1 Patriate Frangais, June 23, 1792; also July 14. 

2 Ibid., July 6, 1792. ^ Ibid., July 4, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 283 

taking part in the demonstration which occurred a few days 
later, known as the "kiss of Lamourette," when, on the pro- 
posal of Lamourette that all who "loathed and hated the idea 
of a republic should rise," the deputies of the right and the left 
flew into one another's arms and embraced one another with 
rapture. Whether or not Brissot joined in this demonstration 
is not stated. Although the Patriate Frangais formally and 
enthusiastically approved of the occurrence, alluding to it as 
"a happy, thrice happy reunion," ^ to Brissot himself the 
situation was most disconcerting. He was just on the point of 
making a speech against the king which this denunciation 
rendered most untimely. He had the good sense, however, to 
see that it was a mere hysterical outbreak which would not 
permanently influence real convictions, and that all he had to 
do was to postpone his speech. He, therefore, with a skillful 
allusion to the fraternity thus delightfully restored, begged 
that his intended speech might be put off till the next day, on 
the ground that it contained some allusions no longer fitting 
now that peace was restored. ^ 

The next day but one he made the promised speech, but al- 
though he may have modified it in detail, in its main lines it 
supported the position which Vergniaud had taken a few days 
before. Like Vergniaud, within the limits of a single speech he 
attacked the monarch and upheld the monarchy. But he went 
even further than Vergniaud, for what the latter had only 
hinted and suggested, Brissot said openly. The country was 
still in danger, he declared, in spite of the recent reconciliation 
between the members of the Assembly. That reconciliation 
was certainly a cause for rejoicing, but it would not prevent 
the Prussians and the Austrians from marching against them, 
or Flanders and the Rhine from being threatened with invasion. 
"And why is the country still in danger?" he asked. "It is 
not that we lack troops, not that our troops are wanting in 
courage, that our frontiers are not better fortified, but because 

^ Patriate Frangais, July 9, 1792. The article was signed G. D. (Girey- 
Dupre). 2 Moniteur, July 8, 1792. 



284 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

our strength is paralyzed. And who is to blame for this fatal 
lethargy? A single man whom the nation made its chief, and 
whom the courtiers have made its enemy. . . . Bring together 
all these facts : The aversion of the cabinet of the Tuileries for 
hostile measures; its silence upon the coalition; its tardiness in 
entering Brabant; its indulgence for the rebels and the elec- 
tors; the dismissal of the patriot ministers who had brought 
about the invasion; their replacement by creatures of the in- 
triguers who opposed the war; the inaction of that General 
Lafayette who was responsible for them, for those who be- 
trayed us; the paralyzing of the forces of Luckner; the refusal 
of the camp of two thousand men; the silence regarding the 
march of the Prussians. Consider these things and then say 
that there does not exist a plan of conspiracy against France, 
in favor of the House of Austria, against liberty in favor of the 
court. Say that the center of it is not to be found in that court, 
in the executive power, in its agents." In view of these dan- 
gers, how was the country to be saved .'* What measures must 
be taken? The country must be saved, Brissot declared, not by 
violent measures, but by means of the constitution. And since 
the constitution provided that a king who had retracted his 
oath should be considered to have abdicated, he demanded 
that a committee be appointed to investigate the king's con- 
duct. He also proposed that the Assembly should declare 
enemies of the nation all those who had given or should give 
the king pernicious advice, and that their conduct should be 
investigated; that the existing ministry no longer possessed 
the confidence of the nation. And, finally, what is of special 
importance as showing Brissot's attitude toward the kind of 
authority afterward put in force by the Terror, he asked for the 
establishment of a committee of general security to examine all 
accusations of crimes against the general safety and against 
the constitution. A few days later he put the attack in more 
concrete form by assailing Chambonas,^ the minister for foreign 

^ Discours sur les causes des dangers de la Patrie, et sur les mesures a prendre, 
prononce le 9 juillet, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 285 

affairs. Chambonas,^ he declared, had announced to the diplo- 
matic committee that the Piedmontese and Sardinian troops 
arrayed against France numbered only 1200, whereas, accord- 
ing to Montesquieu, 2 there were 56,000. He therefore demanded 
that Chambonas be called on for an explanation. 

Within the next few days Brissot showed a decided change 
of front, which gave rise to grave accusations from his enemies 
and much explanation then and afterwards on his own part. 
He first showed his change of position in his speech of July 25, 
in which, apropos of Gensonne's proposed action against con- 
spirators, he again discussed measures for the safety of the 
state, but this time with a very different emphasis from that 
of his speech of July 9.^ He now laid the emphasis not on the 
evil deeds of the king, but on the necessity of maintaining the 
constitution and the folly of establishing a republic. "There is 
no better means," he declared, "than regicide for making 
royalty eternal. No; it is not by the revolting murder of one 
individual that royalty will ever be destroyed. The resurrec- 
tion of royalty in England was due to the punishment of 
Charles I; it disgusted the people and brought them to the 
feet of his son. If, then, these republican regicides exist, it 
must be confessed that they were very stupid republicans — 
the kind of persons whom kings might well pay for the service 
they render in makiijg republicanism forever execrable. How- 
ever that may be, if that party of regicides exists, if there exist 

^ Victor-Scipion Louis Joseph de la Garde, marquis de Chambonas, was 
bom about 1750. He was the mayor of Sens at the beginning of the Revolu- 
tion, and became an officer in the army. The 16th of June, 1792, he was made 
minister for foreign affairs in place of Dimiouriez, but in consequence of denun- 
ciations presented by the Assembly he soon resigned and after the 10th of 
August emigrated to London. He returned to France at the Restoration, and 
died in 1829. 

2 Anne-Pierre, marquis de Montesquieu, was bom in 1739. He was a deputy 
from the nobility of Paris to the Constituent Assembly and an officer in the army. 
In view of accusations brought against him, he had to leave France in 1792. 
See Moniteur, July 24, 1792. 

' Gensonne's proposal was to give to the municipalities the right of arresting 
and examining citizens who should be accused of plots against the general 
safety of the state and against the constitution. Moniteur, July 27, 1792. 



286 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

men who want to establish the repubhc immediately, upon the 
debris of the constitution, th^ knife of the law ought to fall 
upon them." ^ 

The next day, July 26, he spoke again, this time apropos of 
a proposed letter of criticism to the king presented by Guadet. 
While he supported the strictures on the king's conduct con- 
tained in Guadet's letter and denounced the king as opposed 
to the Revolution, he counseled delay in bringing about his 
dethronement. "I know, gentlemen," he declared, "that if 
it were well proved that the king was in agreement with 
enemies without, not to try him, not to condemn him would 
be a crime of high treason against the people. But I know also 
that what an anti-revolutionary king would desire for the full- 
est possible success would be a hasty step on the part of the 
Assembly, a violent measure which would not have the general 
support of the nation. And why.f* Because if the king were con- 
demned in the heat of anger, carelessly or with too great haste, 
the majority of the nation which desires justice for all, which 
desires that the enactment of justice be preceded by a severe 
examination, the majority, I say, might blame you, and 
though it might not entirely acquit the king, yet it might fail 
to support you in your further measures." ^ 

The impression conveyed by this speech was that Brissot 
was opposed to dethronement. In view of his recent and vehe- 
ment attacks on the king, Brissot's present position suggested 
that he had either changed his mind with surprising sudden- 
ness, or that he was insincere. His audience thought the latter, 
for there were cries of "Down with the double-faced rogue!" 
while one energetic spectator in the gallery, with unfortu- 
nately good aim, threw two plums at him.' 

Various explanations of his action have been given. Ac- 

^ Opinion de J. P. Brissot sur les mesures de police generale proposSes par M. 
Gensonne. 

^ Opinion sjir la marche a suivre en examinant la question de la decheance et les 
autres mesures, prononcS le 26 juillet, 1792. 

^ See Aulard, Orateurs de la Legislative, i, 204, note. " 11 Jut frappe de deux 
prunes [dit un journal] qu'une main vigoureuse lui avoit lancSes du haul des 
tribunes." 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 287 

cording to Soulavie, ^ he (Soulavie) had been asked — so he 
says in his memoirs — by Chambonas to try to induce Brissot 
by means of a bribe to moderate his efforts for dethronement, 
but feeling sure that this method would fail, he advised 
Chambonas, instead of trying to bribe Brissot, to endeavor to 
persuade him to give up his efforts for the dethronement, on 
the ground that it would injure his party. Chambonas took 
his advice, Soulavie adds, and succeeded.^ 

If the testimony given at the trial of Brissot is to be be- 
lieved, he not only abandoned his efforts at dethronement by 
constitutional means, but tried to hinder the efforts of others, 
and when active measures were proposed attempted to put a 
stop to them.^ According to Bertrand de Molleville, he de- 
manded twelve million livres as his price for preventing the 
insurrectionary movement.* This charge, however, is abso- 
lutely uncorroborated and is a sheer absurdity.^ 

^ Jean Louis Girard Soulavie was born in 1752. At the time of the French 
Revolution he was vicar-general of the diocese of Chalons. He became an 
ardent revolutionist, was one of the first priests to marry, was connected with 
the revolution in Geneva, and narrowly escaped the scaffold as an alleged 
agent of Robespierre. The latter part of his life he devoted to literary work. 
His best-known publication is MSmoires historiques et folitiques du regne de 
Louis XVI. 

^ "Je vous promets le secret, et vous assure que si vous prenez Brissot par la 
crainte de ce qui peut arriver d son parti, si la nation n'adhere pas a son opinion 
sur la dScheance, vous en oktiendrez par la peur ce que vous voudrez, plutot que 
par des esp6rances . . . Je pense que si on dit a Brissot quil est entre deux feux, 
entre les Jacobins Snergiques et les royalistes, et quil peut en manquant sa dS- 
cheance, se trouver dans le position, par exemple, des reviseurs de 1791, vous 
pourrez vous le gagner. Faites valoir surtout la puissance de la constitution, la 
minoritS de ses ennemis dans le Legislature, le changement tons les six mois des 
opinions et de Vesprit public en France, et I'incertitude de resister, en cas de 
deckeance, au parti d'Orleans, s'il n'en est pas I'agent ; et s'il Vest I'incertitude 
de resister aux royalistes de 1788, rSunis aux constitutionnels attachSs a Louis 
XVI, ay ant d'ailleurs Lafayette a leur tete." Soulavie, MSmoires, vi, 430-31. 

Chambonas's success, as far as he personally was concerned, was only par- 
tial, for, on August 4, Brissot again attacked him with the charge that he had 
misused the secret funds of the department of foreign affairs. Moniteur, 
August 5, 1792. 

3 Moniteur, October 27, 1793. 

* See Soulavie's testimony to Brissot's incorruptibility mentioned above. 

^ MSmoires, u, 139. 



288 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Even at the time, his speech of July 26 created such a furor 
that when it was printed he tried to conciliate opinion by add- 
ing an explanatory note in which he declared that he had been 
misunderstood; that he was really not opposed to dethrone- 
ment, but only to too great haste in bringing it about. He took 
this stand, he subsequently explained, because he had been 
brought to realize that public opinion, especially in the prov- 
inces, was not ripe for dethronement, and while striving to 
check too precipitate action he was using every means in his 
power, and especially his newspaper, to educate opinion so that 
it might be prepared for dethronement. This explanation of 
Brissot's is borne out by a dispatch of Earl Gower, who, on 
July 27, wrote as follows: "The Committee of Twenty-one, 
before whom that general [Montesquieu] was examined, had 
agreed to report a Project of a decree to declare that the Crown 
was forfeited, but upon his answering them that not only every 
officer but every soldier would oppose them, they desisted. 
This sufficiently accounts for the speech made by M. Brissot 
yesterday in the Assembly. It does not, however, follow that 
from the abortion of this scheme, his most Christian majesty 
is to be considered in a less dangerous situation than for- 
merly." ^ 

Deference to public opinion was, nevertheless, not the all- 
sufficient explanation of the action of Brissot and his Girondin 
friends in the eyes of their enemies, the Jacobins. The real 
reason, the latter asserted, was that the Girondins wanted to 
get themselves back into office, and, just so long as they saw 
any chance of doing it, they were willing to support the mon- 
archy. Formal accusation of such intent was made against 
them and especially against Brissot at the Jacobin Club on 
August 1, by M. Anthoine.^ The Girondins did, indeed, make 
a bid for position and power in the famous memoir of July 20 
which Vergniaud, Gensonne, and Guadet sent to the king. 
After exhorting him to strengthen his own position, which they 

1 This dispatch was dated July 27, 1792. Dis-patches of Earl Gower, 203. 
* Aulard, Les Jacobins, iv, 169. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 289 

had themselves so successfully undermined but a few weeks 
before, they skillfully insinuated that the best way to do it 
would be to dismiss inefficient ministers and to recall to the 
ministry "well-known patriots." ^ 

Brissot's wavering attitude not only gave occasion for at- 
tack to his enemies, but caused distress to at least one of his 
friends — Madame Roland. On July 31 she wrote to him com- 
plaining of his silence at the Assembly, and tried in vain to stir 
him to take the lead in decisive action. To her, it was a great 
opportunity for a great man and she ardently desired that 
Brissot might see and seize his chance. ^ 

In the case of Lafayette, Brissot did seize his chance, and 
when Lafayette, in his letter read before the Assembly on the 
18th of June, opposed the dismissal of the Girondin ministry 
and denounced the Jacobin Club, Brissot backed up his previ- 
ous assertions that he was no friend of Lafayette's by a prompt 
and spirited attack. In spite of his own quarrels with the 
Jacobins, he resented Lafayette's arraignment of that body 
as a violation of freedom of speech and objected still more 
vehemently to his evident sympathy with the king.^ After 
the events of June 20, this sympathy became more evident 
and took the form of active measures, Lafayette presumed 
to leave his army without permission, came to Paris, and 

* See the account by Guadet, Moniteur, January 5, 1793. Brissot did not 
sign this memoir, but note his approval (see above) of Guadet's proposed letter 
to the king which contained much the same ideas. 

^ Lettres, ii, 429. Whether stirred by Madame Boland's appeal or assured 
by the king's refusal to listen to Girondin advice that there was nothing to be 
gained in longer propping up the throne, Brissot spoke with open contempt 
on August 5 of those residents of the district of the Filles-Saint-Thomas who 
were opposed to dethronement. Patriate Franqais, August 5, 1792. 

' " C'est le coup le plus violent qu'on ait encore porte a liberie, coup d'autant 
plus dangerevx, qu'il est porte par un gSneral qui se vante d'avoir une armee d 
lui, de ne faire quun avec son armSe ; d'autant plus dangereux, encore, que cet 
homme a su, par sa feinte moderation et par ses artifices, se conserver un parti, 
meme parmi les homrnes qui aimeni vivement la libertS ; sa lettre le demasque. . . . 

" Oui, tous les kommes qui idoldtrent la liberte ont du etre revoltes de cette lettre. 
Conserver encore quelque estime pour M. Lafayette apres Vavoir entendue c'est 
en etre indigne sd-meme ? " Patriate Frangais, June 19, 1792. 



290 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

after having offered his services to the royal family, ap- 
peared before the Assembly on June 28 and "demanded the 
punishment of the instigators of the plot of June 20.^ Where- 
upon the Assembly tried to pass a vote of censure against 
him. Again Brissot saw his opportunity and the same day he 
attacked Lafayette at the Jacobin Club, solemnly engaging 
to prove at the bar of the Assembly that Lafayette was guilty 
of high treason.^ On July 29, he, with Guadet, Gensonne, and 
several other members of the Assembly, put on record a signed 
declaration containing evidence, based on statements of Mar- 
shal Luckner, that Lafayette intended to march on Paris.' The 
4th of August Brissot tried to hasten matters by demanding a 
report from the committee to which the conduct of Lafayette 
had been referred,* and on August 8 he made his promised at- 
tack, and denounced Lafayette in unsparing terms. He began 
by saying that while he did not assert that Lafayette was 
actually in concert with the Austrians, he did assert that if 
Lafayette had been in concert with them, his actions would 
not have been different from what they actually were. He 
further declared that Lafayette had no legal right to present a 
petition; that he compromised the safety of the state in leaving 
his army; that if the Austrians were not present in large num- 
bers he ought to have attacked them; that if they were there 
in large numbers it was treason to leave the army in danger; 
that his demand for the suppression of popular societies was an 
attempt on the constitution; that he had sought to intimidate 
and degrade the legislature and to make a Cromwell of him- 
self; and that in view of these facts a decree of censure should 
be passed against him. In spite of these accusations the decree 
failed of enactment.^ 

1 Moniteur, June 29, 1792. 

^ Journal des dSbats de la SociitS des Amis de la Constitution, s6ance du jeudi, 
juin 28, 1792. 

^ Bihliotheque de la Chambre des dSputSs; collection des affaires du Temps, 
t. 158, n. 30 bis, quoted in Archives parlementaires, xlvii, 268. 

* Moniteur, August 5, 1792. 

* See the Patriate Frangais of August 10, for scathing allusions to the weak- 
ness, the corruption, and the imbecility of those who voted against the decree. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 291 

Meanwhile, in regard to the king's proposed dethronement, 
while the Girondins were holding back, the Jacobins acted. 
The latter overthrew the regular municipal authorities, set up 
an insurrectionary commune of their own, and by its aid 
brought on the insurrection which culminated in the sack of 
the Tuileries. The insurrection once accomplished, the Giron- 
dins were not slow in pointing out that they had made it in- 
evitable and in claiming the credit for it. To this the Jacobins 
retorted that though the Girondins might have had some share 
in preparing the way for it, when it came to decisive action it 
was they themselves who deserved the credit. The Girondins 
were, however, still in a majority in the Assembly, and since 
it was the Assembly which took the legal steps made necessary 
by the insurrection, — the suspension of the king, the over- 
throw of the ministry, the appointment of a new ministry, and 
the calling of a convention, — they might well claim that their 
part in the crisis was an important one. 

In the hurried discussion of these pivotal measures Brissot's 
voice was heard several times. In order that the papers of the 
department of foreign affairs might be secured, he asked that 
seals be placed on the house of Bonne-Carrere where they were 
kept, and in making the motion he took occasion to allude 
to Bonne-Carrere as a person of detestable reputation and to 
remind the Assembly that he had managed to get himself 
appointed ambassador to the United States — an allusion 
which led to the passing of a further decree for the revocation 
of Bonne-Carrere 's appointment.^ More important than the 
matter of an individual ambassador was the reorganization of 
the ministry. Vergniaud had made a motion for such reor- 
ganization, to which Brissot objected that it should be pre- 
ceded by a vote of lack of confidence in the existing ministry.^ 
With the new ministry itself Brissot was greatly pleased. He 
evidently saw a chance for a renewal of his former influence, 

^ Moniteur, August 12, 1792. For Brissot's previous relations with Bonne- 
Carrere see p. 280. 
* Moniteur, August 12, 1792. 



292 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

an expectation which is significantly expressed in a note to 
Madame Roland, probably of about August 10: "I send for 
her husband and for Lanthenas," it read, "a list of patriots 
to whom places are to be given. For he ought always to have 
such a list before him." ^ Brissot had managed Roland before, 
and it was therefore natural that he should rejoice on his re- 
turn to office. To the placing of Danton in the ministry it 
would not have been surprising if he had made some objection, 
but, when asked by Fab re d 'Eglantine whether he was opposed 
to Danton, he replied that on the contrary he approved of him 
and that his appointment was the seal of their reconciliation.^ 
It was far, however, from being the seal of reconciliation 
between the Assembly and the Commune. The practical ques- 
tion was who was to control the power which had been taken 
from the king; in other words, who was to rule France till the 
Convention should meet. The Assembly asserted that this 
task was its business and its business exclusively, while the 
insurrectionary Commune maintained quite as vigorously 
that it also had a right to take part in the direction of affairs. 
There thus resulted a furious struggle between the Assembly on 
the one hand and the insurrectionary Commune on the other. 
The leadership in the Assembly, both in its constructive work 
and in its struggle with the Commune, was largely directed by 
the Committee of Twenty-one. This committee had grown 
out of a special committee organized on March 6 and 9, 1792, 
and known as the Committee of Twelve. On the 18th of June 
its members were increased to twenty-one.^ It now became 
the most important committee of the Assembly and, as has been 

^ Quoted by Perroud {Lettres de Madame Roland, u, 734, and note, app.) 
from a report of Brival, text corrected according to Lanthenas. See also Cor- 
respondance, 293. Goetz-Bernstein differs from M. Perroud in that he as- 
signs this note to the time of Roland's first ministry. For his reasons for so 
doing see his La Diplomatie de la Gironde, 173, note. 

^ Aulard, Histoire politique, 219. Quoted from testimony at the trial of the 
Girondins. See Moniteur, October 27, 1793, supplement. 

' Aulard, Recueil des actes du Comite du Salut public. It was also known as 
the Commission extraordinaire. Proces-verbaux de la Legislative, August 12, 
1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 293 

pointed out, it played a role analogous to that of the great 
Committee of Public Safety under the Convention. Its work 
was of wide scope and included measures on foreign affairs, the 
provinces, the army, property, the Church, and the family. 
On August 12, Brissot was added to this most important com- 
mittee,^ in which he took an active part and was at one time 
its president.^ He indorsed its action in his journal, contended 
in its behalf against his old enemies, Marat and Robespierre, 
presented its reports, and even when he did not appear promi- 
nently to represent it, did much to direct its course. 

Among the first tasks of the Assembly was to provide against 
reaction in favor of royalty. What they most feared, and with 
good reason, was that Lafayette might march upon Paris. In 
spite of the failure of the Assembly on August 8 to bring a de- 
cree against him, feeling had been growing. The news that he 
had arrested the commissioners sent to the army brought mat- 
ters to a crisis, and on August 19, urged on by the Commune, 
the Committee of Twenty -one presented and secured the pas- 
sage of a decree declaring Lafayette guilty of high treason.^ 
In commenting on this Brissot summed up his opinion of La- 
fayette with unsparing severity. "See," he wrote, "to what 
a man has been brought by ambition badly directed and 
sustained by little ability, an incurable spirit of intrigue, the 
popularity of a courtier, ill-directed schemes, rascality without 
cleverness, a policy, which, so to speak, lived from hand to 
mouth, a man whom fortune persisted in making play the part 
of a great personage." ■* 

Another source of danger, the Assembly felt, was in the ad- 
visers of the king; and having dealt with Lafayette they next 

^ Proces-verbaux de la Legislative, August 12, 1792. 

" Eire, La Legende des Girondins, 97. Vatel, Vergniaud, ii, 127. Neither 
writer cites his authority; considering the importance of the position, this is a 
matter of note, but it is perhaps to be accounted for by the fact that the min- 
utes of the committee after August 10 have disappeared. See Aulard, Recueil 
des actes du Comite du Salut public, i. Introduction, p. liii. 

3 Moniteur, August 21, 1792. 

* Patriate Frangais, August 20, 1792. 



294 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

turned their attention to Montmorin. The preceding May 
accusations had been brought against Montmorin by Brissot 
of being devoted, not merely to the king, but to the Austrian 
government and the emigres.^ After the 10th of August he had 
hidden in order to escape arrest, but he was now discovered, 
and on the proposal of the Committee of Twenty-one haled 
before the Assembly, where Brissot reiterated his former 
charges against him. He charged him particularly with having 
entered into a treasonable correspondence with the Count 
d'Artois and with having failed to communicate important 
correspondence to the Assembly. This time the Assembly took 
definite action and decreed that Montmorin be sent to prison.^ 

The Assembly next proceeded to deal with the Swiss troops, 
a matter which demanded immediate attention because of the 
part which the Swiss had taken in defending the Tuileries 
against the mob on the 10th of August. The report of the com- 
mittee was presented by Brissot, who argued that free men 
ought to take the responsibility of their own defense; that the 
agreement for the service of the Swiss in France had been made 
by despotic kings, less with the purpose of defending the nation 
against foreign powers than of defending themselves against 
the French people; and finally, that the action of the Swiss 
troops on the 10th of August made their further continuance in 
the service of France impossible. A decree was accordingly 
passed for their dismissal.^ 

While dealing with the participants in the 10th of August, 
the Assembly had also to justify the events of that day to for- 
eign powers. On the suspension of the king, the representatives 
of almost all foreign powers had left Paris, and the temporary 
government thus found itself in a most embarrassing situa- 
tion with respect to the governments of Europe. With a view 
to conciliating foreign opinion, the Assembly decreed that a 

1 See p. 273. ^ Moniteur, August 23 and 24, 1792. 

^ Ihid., August 22, 1792. Also Rapport fait au nom de la Commission ex- 
traordinaire des Comites diplomatique et militaire le 20 aoHU, 1792, sur le 
licenciemeni des regiments suisses au service de la France. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 295 

defense of the events of August 10 be drawn up and sent to 
the powers which had declared their intention of preserving 
neutrahty. This address, which was prepared and presented 
by Brissot, was an able piece of work. The bloodshed of the 
10th of August, he admitted, was to be regretted, but the court 
alone, by ordering the soldiers to fire on the people, was to 
blame for it. It but precipitated the suspension of the king, 
which was already under consideration. That suspension was 
due to a long series of acts on his part, particularly in connec- 
tion with foreign powers, which had made it evident beyond 
doubt that he was opposed to the Revolution. But although 
the king was suspended and a convention summoned, no an- 
archy existed, and the government was still being carried on 
in accordance with the constitution. Foreign powers, there- 
fore, had no reason to withdraw their ambassadors from 
France or to break off friendly relations with her. Then turn- 
ing to England he made a particularly skillful appeal. "If 
France has not the right to suspend the head of her executive 
power, we must conclude that the English are rebels and that 
the House of Hanover is a usurping dynasty. Surely there is 
no Englishman, no intelligent man, who could sustain such a 
doctrine. The French nation, therefore, is far from fearing a 
hostile attitude on the part of England; she believes in the as- 
surances of its goverpment, she believes in the loyalty and 
love of the English people, she believes that when the court of 
St. James shall have brought its conduct more into line with 
right principles it will be convinced that the French nation 
alone has the right, through its representatives, of passing 
judgment upon the fate of its first public functionary, upon 
the fate of its government, that no power on earth has the 
right of interfering in its decisions." ^ 

At the same time that the Assembly was protesting against 

interference from without she was taking further measures 

to check opposition to the Revolution from within by a decree 

against the non-juring clergy. This decree, which was more 

^ Projet de dSdaraiion de I'Assemblee nationale, 5. 



BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

rigorous than anything yet attempted, provided that all non- 
juring priests must leave France within fifteen days under 
penalty of deportation to French-Guiana, While Brissot does 
not appear to have actively opposed this measure, he spoke 
of it with some reservation and suggested that there was danger 
that the innocent might be punished instead of the guilty 
and that the priest to whom the taking of the oath was a vio- 
lation of his conscience would suffer instead of the violent and 
dangerous anti-revolutionist.^ 

In regard to another question, concerning the Church, 
Brissot was more radical, namely, the decree facilitating di- 
vorce. His paper at least spoke of it in terms of unmeasured 
approval, as "the work of superstition overturned, the pre- 
judices of many centuries destroyed, nature triumphant over 
the Church of Rome, the heavy chains of Hymen changed for 
garlands of flowers, morals regenerated, and conjugal fidelity 
established on the foundations of equality and the reciprocity 
of duties as well as of rights." ^' 

Radical and rapid as was the work of the Assembly, it was 
not suflSciently so to suit the Commune, especially in its atti- 
tude toward the reactionaries. The Commune therefore pro- 
ceeded to dictate to the Assembly, an interference which the 
Assembly naturally resented, and which led to bitter conflict. 
The first clash came about over the establishment of a special 
court, which the Commune kept demanding and which the 
Assembly fought step by step. As a member of the Commit- 
tee of Twenty-one, Brissot was in the forefront of the fight. 
On the 11th of August the Assembly had taken steps toward the 
formation of a court-martial to try the Swiss for their part in 
the bloodshed of the preceding day.^ This, however, did not 
satisfy the Commune, as the jurisdiction of such a court would 
presumably be limited to those immediately concerned with the 
actual violence, and did not extend to conspirators behind 
the scenes. On the 14th of August, therefore, the Commune 

1 Patriote FrariQais, August 25, 1792. " Ibid., September 1, 1782. 

3 MoniteuT, August 13, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 297 

sent a deputation which demanded to know what action the 
Assembly intended to take and added that if it did not take 
immediate action, they (the deputation) would wait until it 
did. ^ The Assembly naturally protested against such a demand, 
as insulting to its dignity, but at the same time it was intimi- 
dated into some concession in decreeing that each of the sec- 
tions of Paris might choose two jures (T accusation and two 
jures de jugement. This halfway measure did not satisfy the 
Commune, and the next day the Commune again sent a deputa- 
tion headed by Robespierre, which demanded in no measured 
terms the establishment of a special court in which the ac- 
cused should be judged directly by commissioners chosen by 
the sections and from whose decision there should be no appeal. 
Brissot now came to the front and in an eloquent speech, in 
which he represented the Committee of Twenty-one, declared 
that such a court would be nothing more or less than a court- 
martial and as such w^ould involve a violation of the principles 
of the constitution; and that, in preserving the constitutional 
forms of trial and at the same time in adding new jurors to be 
chosen directly by the sections, due provision had been made 
for rendering justice more impartial and more rapid. "Doubt- 
less forms still more rapid might have been used," he ad- 
mitted, "but they belong only to despotism; despotism alone 
can employ them, because it does not fear to dishonor itself 
by cruelty; but a free people desires to be and must be just 
even in its vengeance." ^ 

One further point the committee was willing to concede, 
namely, that the right of appeal be done away with. The As- 
sembly, therefore, voted in accordance with Brissot's report 
that the demand of the Commune for a special court be re- 
fused, but that the right of appeal be abolished. The Assembly 
could thus flatter itself that it had withstood the Commune. 
It had, however, made a vital concession, and when the Com- 
mune again reiterated its demands, it gave way and ordered the 
establishment of a special tribunal.^ 

1 Moniteiir, August 17, 1792. ^ jud^^ August 17, 1792. 

» Ibid., August 19, 1792. 



298 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Brissot again came into conflict with the Commune on its 
action in declaring that the signers of the two petitions of the 
eight thousand and the twenty thousand should be declared 
incapable of holding any civil oflBce or of bearing arms.^ These 
petitions had been drawn up by the national guard of Paris 
early in the summer of 1792, in protest against the camp of 
f^erh, and represented the hostility of the bourgeois element 
to a democratic army. The decree of the Commune was there- 
fore a retaliation upon the bourgeois. It was, moreover, in 
the eyes of the Assembly, a usurpation of power, and when the 
subject came up Brissot not only supported the motion that 
the petitions be burned, but demanded that the citizens who 
possessed copies of them should be asked to destroy them and 
that any one who should attempt to make use of them for 
purposes of proscription should be declared an unworthy 
citizen. 2 

Brissot was further aroused against the Commune by its 
treatment of his colleague in the management of the Patriote 
Frangais, Girey-Dupre. The Patriote Frangais had been most 
vehement in assailing the Commune, and on the 30th of August, 
Girey-Dupre was summoned before the Commune to answer 
for its strictures. Hereupon the Assembly, very angry at the 
assumption of such power by the Commune, not only quashed 
the summons, and called to its own bar the authorities of the 
Commune and censured them, but ordered a new municipal 
election and the dissolution of the Commune. The Commune, 
however, refused to dissolve, and continued to send out its de- 
crees all over France and to dictate terms to the Assembly and 
to the Committee of Twenty-one. Brissot was highly indignant 
at such conduct, which he considered a base usurpation of 
power. "As long as the temporary commissioners," he de- 
clared, "devoted themselves to directing the revolution of the 
10th of August, to pursuing the conspirators and to watching 
those who might be accused of being conspirators, the patriots 

^ See von Sybel, French Revolution, ii, 63. 
2 Moniteur, September 10, 1792. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY £99 

saw, without being disturbed, the exercise of power, which, 
having sprung into being with the insurrection, ought to perish 
with it and be lost in the sovereignty of the people. But when 
we saw those commissioners prolong their dictatorial authority, 
usurp the rights of the Commune, dissolve and create again 
authorities which the Commune alone had the right to create 
and dissolve, suspend magistrates chosen and loved by the 
people — in short, when we realized that they were doing 
things which even extraordinary conditions could not justify, 
then, at last, good citizens opened their eyes, and perceived 
that they had not twice conquered liberty in order to hand it 
over to intriguers, and that they ought not to raise upon the 
ruins of royal and patrician despotism a despotism more op- 
pressive and more hateful." ^ 

The Commune, on the other hand, was supported by Marat. 
In a placard of August 28 he denounced "the infamous efforts 
of such men as Brissot, Condorcet, Vergniaud, and Guadet." 
They had written to all the provinces, he declared, that the 
National Assembly was under the knife of the Commune of 
Paris, and their object in so doing was to have the Convention 
removed from Paris to some city "gangrened by aristocracy," 
where, they flattered themselves, they could direct its opera- 
tions to their taste. ^ 

Further and more serious accusations were now brought 
against Brissot and the other Girondins; namely, that they 
were plotting to preserve the monarchy while overthrowing 
the monarch, and to put upon the throne either the Duke of 
York, second son of the king of England, or the Duke of Bruns- 
wick. The charges went all the way from an assertion that 

1 Patriote Franqais, August 30, 1792. 

2 "Dans un placard du 28 aout 1792 [Ckevremoni, Jean Paul Marat, ii, 96], 
Marat disait que ces infdmes [Brissot, Condorcet, Vergniaud, Guadet, etc.] ont 
parte la sceleratesse jusqua ecrire, dans tons les departements, que I'Assemblee 
nationale est sous le couteau de la Commune de Paris dirigee par une trentaine de 
factieux, afin de faire choix de quelque ville gangrenie d'aristocratie, pour siege de 
la Convention nationale quils se flattent de mener d, leur grS. Aulard, Histoire 
politique, 237, note. 



300 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the Girondins had considered these men as possible candidates 
for the throne of France to a direct charge of venaHty.^ Of the 
latter there is absolutely no proof. The accusation took defi- 
nite and formal shape when, on the evening of September 2, 
Billaud-Varennes and Robespierre denounced before the Com- 
mune a plot in favor of the Duke of Brunswick. ^ According 
to his own account, Brissot was charged not only with having 
plotted to deliver France to the Duke of Brunswick, but of 
having received several millions for that purpose. A search 
was accordingly made of his papers, but as no proof was found 
he was allowed to go unmolested.^ The significance of this 
action lies not in the charge itself, but in the fact that it was 
made at the time of the massacres of September, when all sus- 
pected royalists were in imminent danger of losing their lives. 
That the members of the Commune should have made such 
a charge at this moment is an evidence that they regarded 

^ Petion, in his Discours sur Vaccusation intentee contre Robespierre, denies 
in reply to the reported accusation of Robespierre, that Brissot favored the 
Duke of Brunswick. Aulard, in his Histoire politique (p. 209, note), says: 
"Carra, soit dans les Annales patriotiques salt a la tribune des Jacobins, avait, 
a mots converts, designe le due d' York et dux; de Brunswick, comme des candidates 
possibles {et acceptables) autrone de France." See Acte d' accusation rSdigS par 
Amar contre les Girondins, 15-17. See also Paganel, who represents a moderate 
point of view. "A une epoque oil V existence politique de la France couroit les 
plus grands dangers, lorsquil s'agissoit de renverser le irone ou de remettre le 
sceptre constitutionnel dans une main puissante et protectrice, Brissot proposa 
aux hommes influens d'un comite qui regloit les delibSrations de V Assemblee 
legislative, un fils de George et la constitution anglaise, sous la garantie du roi et 
du parlement. Ce fait est certain ; cependant il n'existe aucune preuve directe du 
crime de trahison." Paganel, Essai historique, ii, 232. Goetz-Bemstein, p. 276, 
note, quotes from GoUz to Frederick William, March 26, 1792 (Prussian 
archives): "La populace devient de plus en plus insolente. . . . Cela accrSdite 
une opinion, que pourtant je ne partage pas encore, que V Angleterre, par Brissot 
et autres, paye la tribune pour maintenir la confusion en France." 

2 According to M. Aulard (Histoire politique, 253-55), the Proces-verbaux de 
la commune (ed. Tourneux, 81) does not give the names of the alleged in- 
stigators of the plot, but according to Brissot's account in the Patriate Franqais 
of September 4 he was one of those designated. 

' See his own account of the matter in a letter addressed to his fellow citizens 
and published in the Patriate Franqais, September 4, and in the Moniteur 
of September 7, 1792. See also Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 434; and Brissot, 
Memoires, ii, 247. 



MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 301 

Brissot with violent animosity, and that they were ready to 
resort to accusations which, though they may have beheved, 
they were unable to prove. 

As to Brissot's attitude toward the massacres, accounts 
differ. The Girondins subsequently charged the Commune 
and its Jacobin leaders with the responsibility and at the same 
time endeavored to clear themselves of all part in that respon- 
sibility. If his own statement in his Reponse au rapport de 
Saint-Just is to be relied on, Brissot used all his influence to 
induce Danton to put a stop to the massacres.^ This assertion 
receives some support from Peltier, who was by no means an 
admirer of Brissot. According to his account, Brissot be- 
sought Danton to know if there were not some means of pre- 
venting the innocent from being confounded with the guilty.^ 
On the other hand, according to the evidence at his trial, he was 
present at the house of Petion when two of the assassins came 
in and drank with Petion.^ Desmoulins in his Histoire des 
Brissotins makes the startling insinuation that Brissot on the 
Sd of September had in the presence of Danton frankly ex- 
pressed regret that his bitter enemy Morande had been for- 
gotten. Such an occurrence is, however, hardly credible and 
lacks all corroboration. What is certain is that the Committee 
of Twenty-one, of which Brissot was president and in which 
he had great influence, took no effective action. Whether it was 
in a position to take such action is, however, a question. 

A couple of weeks later the Legislative Assembly came to an 
end. Brissot's interest in the Revolution during this period, 
both in regard to economic and social matters and in the 
struggle for democracy and a republic, is perhaps best expressed 
in the Patriate Franqais of September 22, 1792, summing up 
the work of the Assembly: "When posterity shall pass in re- 
view the acts of this second assembly it will see, not without 
gratitude, that it has overthrown a constitutional Church built 

1 Memmres, ii, 247. 

2 Peltier, Histoire de la Revolution du 10 aoM, 1792, ii, 489. 
' Monifeur, October 27, 1793; supplement. 



302 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

upon the ruins of a national religion; that it has established 
divorce; that it has destroyed the odious distinction which 
obtained between the white man and his black or mulatto fel- 
low citizen; that it has ordered the sale of the property of the 
SmigrSs in small portions and the equal division of communal 
property; that it has torn down the aristocratic barrier raised 
between Frenchman and Frenchman by the title of active 
citizen; that it has sworn to hate and to fight kings and royalty; 
that it has declared with courage and sustained with firmness 
the war against the house of Austria, cruel enemy of the liberty 
of Europe and the curse of the human race; finally, pressed be- 
tween despotism which was seeking to raise its head again and 
anarchy which was seeking to take its place, it has handed on 
intact and considerably increased, the treasure confided to it 
of national liberty." ^ 

In much of this achievement Brissot had been an active 
participant. The part which he himself played had greatly in- 
creased his reputation; it had also increased the number of his 
enemies. He was both better known and better hated at the 
close of the Legislative Assembly than he was at the begin- 
ning. "Brissotin" had come to be a word of significant mean- 
ing. His advocacy of a war which was threatening to become 
disastrous, his quarrel with Robespierre, his radical measures 
in regard to the colonies, the attack which he had suffered at 
the hands of Desmoulins, and finally his conflict with the Com- 
mune, had aroused enmity against him; yet the prestige which 
he had won and in large measure still retained, as a leader in 
matters of foreign affairs, his influence on constitutional legis- 
lation, his influence as editor of the Patriate Frangais, and his 
official position as president of the Committee of Twenty -one 
gave him a place of great prominence and secured his election 
to the Convention. 

1 Quoted in Jaures, Histoire socialiste, ii, 1315. That Jaures in such a work 
chooses Brissot's words in which to sum up the work of the Revolution during 
the Legislative Assembly is in itself a tribute to the social character of Brissot's 
interests. 



CHAPTER XI 

BRISSOT AND THE CONVENTION 

At the opening of the Convention, Brissot had reached the 
climax of his career. His leadership was recognized both at 
home and abroad. French newspapers of the time, for ex- 
ample, refer to "Brissot and Company," "Brissot and his 
coterie," ^ while the English Monthly Review for 1794 speaks 
of him as the leading man in France during the first months of 
the Convention. 2 Within a year, however, power and influence 
had slipped from his hands, and by the expulsion of his party 
from the Convention he was branded with failure. The reason 
for his failure is not far to seek. If he had achieved a reputation 
as an exponent of the war policy and as a democratic republi- 
can, he had also aroused enmity on account of his opposition 
to the Commune of Paris. This enmity now told increasingly 
against him. Moreover, he failed to perceive — and this was 
the main cause of his failure — that with the extension of the 
war there was imperative necessity of putting aside party dif- 
ferences and of maintaining greater centralization in govern- 
ment. This was the fatal mistake of Brissot and the Girondins; 
for their failure to see the necessity for union and centralization 
led to charges of federalism and royalty, and ultimately brought 
the party to its fall. 

Brissot was elected to the Convention from three depart- 
ments,^ a decided contrast to his election to the Legislative 

1 RSvolutions de Paris, October 27, November 3, 1792. 

2 Vol. XIII, p. 228. 

' Of nine deputies elected from the Department of the Eure-et-Loir, Brissot 
was chosen the second on the 5th of September. Proces-verbal de Vassemblee 
Slectorcde du departement de V Eure-et-Loir ; Archives Nationales, C 178 (27). 

Of nine deputies elected from the Department of the Loire, Brissot was 
chosen the ninth on the 6th of September. Proces-verbal de Vassemblee Slecto- 
rale du departement du Loire ; Archives Nationales, C 179 (43). 

Of eleven deputies elected from the Department of the Eure, Brissot was 



304 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Assembly, when he had to maintain a long conflict to secure 
election from one.^ The department which he actually repre- 
sented — he could represent only one — was Eure-et-Loir, 
presumably because his election there occurred first. Not only 
in the elections, but in the opening days of the Convention he 
occupied a position of prominence, being chosen on Septem- 
ber 21 as one of the first secretaries,^ and on October 11 as a 
member of the Committee on the Constitution, and on the 
Diplomatic Committee.^ 

The first step taken by the Convention was the abolition of 
royalty. Although Brissot regretted that the motion had not 
been accompanied by discussion, of the action itseK he en- 
thusiastically approved. It was very difficult, he declared, 
for a man who for so long a time had professed republicanism 
to refrain from pouring out his soul on so happy an occasion. 
He not only rejoiced, he continued, because royalty was abol- 
ished and the yoke of the tyrants cast off, but also because it 
had been done by that class of citizens known as the "people." 
If he were asked why most partisans of republicanism were 
to be found among the people, he would answer it was because 
the people were more trustworthy, had more good sense, fewer 
prejudices, less calculating interest than other classes. It was 
the people who realized that since an hereditary king might be 
tyrannical, ignorant, or imbecile, hereditary royalty was un- 
necessary, in fact an absurdity. "What the people thought," 
he concluded, "the Convention did; the French are finally 
men, free men — Francs."^ 

Since Frenchmen were now free, the Patriate Frangais 

argued, in another article published the same day, it was only 

chosen the seventh on the 6th day of September. Proces-verbal de Vassemblee 
Slectorale du departement de I'Eure; Archives Nationales, C 178 (26). 

^ That he was not chosen as a deputy from Paris is an evidence of the 
strength of the opposition to him on the part of the Commune. See Bourne, 
The Revolutionary Period in Europe, 183. 

^ Proces-verbaux de la Convention, September 21, 1792. 

5 Ibid., October 11, 1792. 

^ Patriate Franqais, September 22, 1792. It would hardly be suspected from 
this effusion that Brissot himself had counseled delay in establishing a republic. 



THE CONVENTION 305 

fitting that the aristocracy of feudal titles should be abolished. 
Monsieur, le sieur implied gradations which no longer existed. 
Even citoyen suggested some distinction; it was, moreover, a 
sacred word, and while it might be fittingly applied to Petion 
or Condorcet, to refer to Marat as citoyen was to prostitute the 
term to a base use. Republicans, the article concluded, might 
well imitate the Romans, and say simply Petion, Condorcet, 
Paine, as at Rome people talked of Cato, Cicero, and Brutus. 
It was all very well for Brissot to utter pseans in praise of 
republicanism, but his enemies had not forgotten that his ad- 
vocacy of a republic had by no means been unflagging and that 
in the critical months of July and August just passed, he had 
advised caution and even delay. 

The quarrel that had developed at that epoch between the 
Girondins and the Jacobin supporters of the Commune now 
received a new and powerful impetus, since neither party 
needed to exercise caution for fear of giving an advantage to 
the monarchists. But scarcely had the decree for the abolition 
of monarchy been passed when the Girondins rushed to the 
assault. Their opponents, they cried, were forever stained 
with the blood of the loathsome massacres of September. It 
was time to set up scaffolds for the assassins and for those who 
provoked assassination.^ Nor was this all. The guilty wretches 
had built upon their crime to make themselves masters of Paris 
and of all France. Masters they were and masters they strove 
to remain by creating a dictatorship whereby Paris could over- 
awe the Convention and control the nation. 

To meet this danger the Girondins proposed to establish a 
departmental guard about Paris, consisting of delegates from 
the eighty-three departments, ^ The Mountain accepted the 
challenge and stubbornly contested every inch of the ground. 
They denied with indignation that they had connived at the 
massacres; they repudiated the charge of seeking to establish 
a dictatorship; but above all they violently opposed the pro- 
ject of a departmental guard. On this question the advantage 

1 Moniteur, September 25, 1792. 2 Ibid., September 26, 1792. 



306 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

was distinctly on their side, for, by proclaiming themselves the 
champions of the liberty of Paris, they discredited the Giron- 
dins with the people of that all-important city. IMoreover, by 
retorting with the counter-charge that the real object of the 
Girondins was to destroy the unity of the nation by splitting 
France into a score of federal republics, they rendered them 
objects of undying suspicion and endless hate. ^ In this quarrel, 
which raged with increasing bitterness for several weeks, Bris- 
sot spoke but seldom,^ but in his journal he upheld his own 
party with a loyalty and attacked the Mountain with a vin- 
dictiveness which would have done credit to the ante-election 
editorials of a modern newspaper. Whatever the Girondins 
advocated was 'per se good, the views of the Mountain -per se 
bad. 

The quarrel began over the question whether a man might 
hold his position as minister and at the same time be a member 
of the legislative body. The individual involved was Roland. 
While Brissot argued against this as a principle, he did want 
Roland to hold both places provisionally, and was furious with 
Danton for having dragged Madame Roland into the discus- 
sion by his remark to the effect that if Roland were asked to 
continue his functions as minister, the same invitation would 
have to be extended to Madame Roland. Such an allusion was 
both ungallant and ungracious, Brissot declared, and Danton 
ought to be ashamed of himself.^ 

Meanwhile the matter of the departmental guard was again 

^ Moniteur, September 26, 1792. Although the plan for a general depart- 
mental guard was defeated, the Girondins succeeded in inducing a consider- 
able number of federes from Marseilles to come up to Paris. This guard ap- 
peared at the bar of the Convention and proclaimed its intention of defending 
Paris against the dictators. See Moniteur, October 22, 1792. 

2 The leadership in this quarrel passed to Buzot. 

' "Danton na pas rougi de dire que, si Vonfaisait une invitation d Roland, H 
Jalloit aussi en faire une a la femme de ce ministre, ■puisqu'elle aide de ses con- 
seils. Ce reproche Stoit infdme : c'Stoit faire un crime a un ministre du bonheur de 
posseder un amis, un conseiller Sclairi dans sa femme. . . . Heureux, mille fois 
heureux, les ministres, les fonctionnaires qui ont des Spouses aussi eclair ees et 
aussi vertueuses : ceux-la ne risquent pas de faire de plates adresscs, ou de proteger 
des scilerats." Patriate Franqais, September 30, 1792. 



THE CONVENTION 307 

taken up by Buzot, who urgently demanded such an organiza- 
tion. This demand Brissot commended with enthusiasm. He 
again warmly approved of Buzot, when some three weeks later 
the latter argued that this measure did not imply hostility to 
Paris, but on the contrary furthered that unity which was for 
the best interest of Paris. ^ And in describing the culminating 
incident of this preliminary struggle between the Girondins and 
the Jacobins — the attack of Louvet on Robespierre — he 
praised the former in extravagant terms and poured his bitter- 
est scorn upon the latter. "Louvet," he declared, "made a 
speech, of which it is impossible to give an extract, because it 
was all equally strong, equally fine. . . . The eloquence of the 
orator was as great as his courage — and never did Cicero 
show more courage when, in the Roman Senate, he challenged 
the anarchist Catiline and the ambitious Antony." ^ Robes- 
pierre's speech, on the contrary, was beneath contempt. 
"Robespierre spoke, — in one word we have analyzed his 
speech — he spoke. He ought to have justified himself and did 
not do it. When accused of having aspired to the dictatorship, 
he answered that in order to aspire to it one must be a fool, 
which does not prove that he did not aspire to it." ^ As for 
Marat, Brissot could hardly contain himself. He begged pardon 
of his readers for being obliged even to mention his name and 
alluded to him as that man "whose every word was a horror, 
whose every thought 'was a crime, every gesture a contortion, 
every action an argument against Providence." ^ 

The combatants in this mortal strife seized upon every coign 
of vantage and delivered their blows in the political clubs as 
well as in the Convention or through the newspapers. At the 
Jacobin Club, it will be recalled, charges of anti-republican- 
ism had already been made against Brissot and decisive action 
had long been pending.^ The charges were now renewed and 
added to. On the 23d of September, he was accused of having 

1 Patriote Franqais, October 9, 1792. ^ 75^.^ October 31, 1792. 
3 Ibid., November 6, 1792. * Ibid., October 5, 1792. 

5 See p. 268. 



308 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

referred to Robespierre and Danton as leaders in the Conven- 
tion of a party of disorganizers and was summoned to appear 
before the Club to explain himself. The next day he answered 
by letter that he would come as soon as he had an evening 
when he was not occupied at the Convention.^ The Jacobin 
Club, however, did not wait for his explanation, but on Octo- 
ber 10 they took the final step and expelled him.^ The formal 
accusation contained but one general charge, that of opposition 
to the Commune of Paris, but the circular which the Club sent 
out to all the affiliated societies notifying them of its action was 
very specific. In it they accused Brissot not only of calum- 
niating Paris, but of having been the friend of Lafayette, of 
temporizing with the king, of injuring the country by bringing 
on a foreign war and of being at best a half-hearted republican.' 
Brissot in reply appealed to his constituents, and in a lengthy 
pamphlet entitled "A tous les republicans de France sur la 
Societe des Jacobins de Paris,*' set forth his side of the case. He 
began by defending his attacks on the leaders of the Paris Com- 
mune, who were now represented by the party of the Mountain. 
They were nothing less, he declared, than a party of disorgan- 
izers; he had preached against them and would continue to 
preach against them. Three revolutions were necessary, he 
went on, to save France: the first to overthrow despotism; the 
second, to destroy royalty; the third ought to overcome an- 
archy, and it is to that last revolution that, since the 10th of 
August, he had consecrated his pen and all his efforts. This was 
his crime in the eyes of the agitators. "These agitators or dis- 
organizers are those," he continued, "who, while preaching 
theoretically an equality of departments, in fact elevate Paris 
above all of them; who thus elevate it only that they may 
elevate themselves, who wish the unity of the republic only 
that they may consolidate the entire republic about their little 

* Aulard, Les Jacobins, iv, 327-30. 

^ The same day Petion was replaced by Danton as president, and on No- 
vember 26 Louvet, Lanthenas, Roland, and Girey-Dupre were expelled. Ibid., 
IV, 376 and 519. 

3 Ibid., IV, 377-78. 



THE CONVENTION 309 

center of intrigue and from that center dominate all the depart- 
ments." Then, turning to the accusation of having brought 
about the war, he declared that the war had justified itself by 
having overthrown royalty. As for the civil war in the colo- 
nies, that was due not to him, but to Barnave; as far as La- 
fayette was concerned, he had been his friend, but had been 
deceived by him; and finally, as for the assertion that he, 
together with his friends Vergniaud, Gensonne, and Guadet, 
formed a "Brissotin" faction — that was a mere figment of 
the imagination gotten up to frighten the people. This defense 
naturally had little effect on the Jacobin Club; but though 
stripped of his power there, he continued to be recognized 
as the chief enemy of the club, at least till November. But 
when during the winter of 1792-93 Buzot became more prom- 
inent, they turned their main attacks upon him. 

While political strife was thus raging within, important 
questions of foreign affairs were demanding settlement. The 
situation was critical; war was being waged against Austria 
and Prussia, but there was still a chance that by wise diplomacy 
further complications might be avoided. In the discussion of 
these questions Brissot was keenly interested and, as a member 
of the Diplomatic Committee, took an active part. 

Even in the conduct of the war the influence of the internal 
strife made itself felt. Marat, for example, denounced Du- 
mouriez for his attitude toward the Prussians and hastened to 
point out that a man who had been lenient to one foe might be 
lenient to another, even to the point of treason. Whereupon 
Brissot, in spite of the bitterness which he had felt toward Du- 
mouriez on account of his part in the fall of the Girondin min- 
istry, promptly took up the cudgels in his behalf, supporting 
Dumouriez's policy and defending his motives.^ And a little 
later, when Dumouriez and Pache fell into disagreement, Bris- 
sot tried to pour oil on the troubled waters. On December 2, 
1792, he wrote to Dumouriez that Pache really believed in his 
(Dumouriez's) talents and recognized his success. At the same 
1 Patriate Franqais, October 4, December 3, 1792, and March 1, 1793. 



310 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

time he exhorted Dumouriez to pay no heed to the calumnies 
directed against him, but to pursue his course in the conviction 
that he would be righteously judged by posterity.^ 

Despite the disputes in the management of the war, which 
led Pache to give only a half-hearted support to the com- 
manders, Dumouriez and the other generals won a series of 
victories which made France successful from the Scheldt to the 
Pyrenees. The question was then raised : What attitude should 
be taken toward the conquered territory? In the excitement 
of victory the members of the Convention lost their heads, and, 
while they gave one answer theoretically, practically they gave 
quite another. On November 19 they set forth in eloquent terms 
the revolutionary propaganda, asserting that France was ready 
to carry aid wherever men were seeking to recover their liberty, ^ 
and yet in almost the same breath they decreed the annexa- 
tion of Savoy ^ and Nice * and the opening of the Scheldt.^ 

What was Brissot's attitude toward this revolutionary 
propaganda ? To spread ideas of liberty had been the object 
of much of his pre-revolutionary writing and the motive of his 
numerous schemes for international organizations. He might, 
therefore, naturally be expected to be in the forefront in press- 
ing a real and immediate liberty upon Europe. Indeed, it has 
been asserted that he surpassed all his friends in his enthusi- 
asm.^ This statement, however, does not seem to be borne out, 

1 Correspondance, 317-18; see also letter of December 9. Ibid., p. 319. 

* The action was taken on November 19, 1792. See the Moniteur, November 
20, 1792. 

' Moniteur, November 28, 1792. 

* Ibid., February 1, 1793. The union had been discussed as early as No- 
vember 4, 1792. 

^ Ibid., November 22, 1792. It is true that in some instances the inhabitants 
themselves of the conquered territory petitioned for annexation. It is also 
true that the Assembly did much to encourage such petitions. Contrary to the 
accepted idea that the Girondins were the leaders in the movement for an- 
nexation, Anacharsis Cloots in his Ni Marat ni Roland asserted that they were 
opposed to it. This assertion, however, is not borne out by their public utter- 
ances. See the Moniteur, November 20, 1792; also Sorel, L'Europe et la Revo- 
lution frangaise, III, 169. 

* Cahen, Condorcet, 439. 



THE CONVENTION 311 

at least in his relation to the decree of November 19. When this 
decree was brought before the Convention, he tried to have it 
referred to the Diplomatic Committee,^ and in his newspaper 
he expressed himself strongly against the general terms in which 
it was couched and declared that this was a fault which might 
have been avoided if it had been referred to a committee for 
greater precision of statement. ^ Later, in his address A ses 
Commettans,^ and in his Projet de defense when criticized for his 
supposed approval of the decree, he reiterated his former objec- 
tions to it.^ His objection at the time the decree was passed 
was certainly sufficient to warrant his later assertions that he 
had opposed it, but that opposition seems to have been to its 
wording rather than to its fundamental principle. At all events, 
with regard to the decree of December 15, he took the stand 
which might have been expected of him and expressed himself 
with enthusiasm. This decree declared that the revolutionary 
institutions should be carried into all countries occupied by 
the French Republic and that the sovereignty of the people 
and the suppression of all existing authorities should be pro- 
claimed. According to Brissot this decree, which was to carry 
"war to the castle and peace to the cottage," was founded 
upon great principles. At the same time he tried to reconcile 
these principles with annexation, by pointing out — what was 
true only in a limited sense — that it was the desire of neigh- 
boring peoples to be united with France.^ 

1 Moniteur, November 20, 1792. 

^ "L'Assemblee rend enfin un decret dont il exit ete sans doute plus sage de 
confier le redaction d un comite : car il offre une gSneralitS qui serait ridicule, si 
r esprit du decret ne le restreignoit pas ; mais il fallait preciser cette restriction : 
c'est une de ces fautes dans lesquelles les assemblies tomheront toutes les fois 
quelles voudront improviser des deliberations sur des matieres importantes et 
delicates." Patriate Frangais, November 20, 1792. 

3 In his address A ses Commettans he speaks of "I'absurde et impolitique 
dScret du 19 novembre, que a justement exite les inquietudes des cabinets ctrangeres." 
In a note in the same address he says: "En vain plusieurs membres en deman- 
daient au moins le renvoi au comite diplomatique, pour rediger de maniere d, ne 
pas blesser les puissances avec lesquelles on etait en paix" (p. 68). 

* Memoires, ii, 307. 

* "Au nam des Comites diplomatique, de la guerre et des finances, Cambon 



312 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The existence of opposition among the neighboring peoples 
to annexation offered to Brissot, however, no legitimate reason 
why France should refrain from annexation. "We ought not," 
he declared in regard to the proposed annexation of Savoy, 
"to pass over in silence a question which has been raised, viz., 
whether a people whom we have delivered from despotism has 
the right to submit itself again to its yoke. We believe not. 
It is with people in society as a whole as with individuals in 
smaller groups; they are allowed to injure themselves, but not 
in such a way as to injure others. Now despotism is an evil, 
not only for the people who submit to it but also for others. 
People ought no more to be allowed to give themselves despots 
than individuals to keep serpents; since their neighbors ought 
not to suffer because of their foolish performances." ^ Nothing 
could more clearly express the system of liberty which France 
was to force on her neighbors whether they desired it or not. 
That, in some cases, their neighbors did not want this liberty, 
was only too evident, but as M. Sorel remarks, it was to be a 
choice between "destruction and fraternity." ^ 

That the existing benighted authorities had any rights does 
not seem to have occurred to Brissot. The existing authorities 
represented despotism, and that was sufficient to deprive them 
of any claim to consideration. These opinions he developed 
in a series of reports on the subject of the relations of France 
to the Swiss cantons and to Geneva. The Swiss had been much 
irritated by the action of the Assembly in regard to the Swiss 
troops on account of their part in the events of the 10th of 
August.^ They had refused to recognize the provisional gov- 

fait un rapport sur la conduite que doivent tenir nos ghiSraux d Vegard des peuples 
dont le territoire est occupS par les armies de la republique, et il propose ensuite un 
projet de decret qu'on peut regarder V organization du pouvoir revolutionnaire 
universel. Les grands principles de liberte et de politique, developpis par le 
rapporteur, ont fait d'autant plus d'impression quil les a exposSs avec ceite 
entrainante naivete, cette simplicite Snergique qui caracterisent Vorateur de la na- 
ture lorsqu'il nest pas corrompu et qu'il ne cherche pas a corrompre." Patriote 
Frangais, December 17, 1792. 

' Patriote Frangais, September 30, 1792. 

* Sorel, U Europe et la Revolution fransaise, iii, 106. ' Ibid., iii, 121-22. 



THE CONVENTION 313 

eminent, and when French troops occupied the valley of Poren- 
truy and stirred up the inhabitants against their sovereign, 
the bishop of Bale, the cantons of Berne and Uri made open 
protest and demanded the removal of the French troops. This, 
Brissot argued, should not be done, as the presence of French 
troops there was a measure of self-defense made necessary by 
the war with the emperor, and had been provided for by pre- 
vious treaties; and further, that the bishop of Bale deserved 
little consideration, as he had flagrantly violated treaties made 
with France.^ Brissot's arguments prevailed and the troops 
remained. Trouble of a like nature soon arose with Geneva. 
Geneva, which was a free imperial city, had in 1558 and 1584 
made a perpetual alliance with the cantons of Berne and Zu- 
rich. At the time of the democratic revolution in Geneva in 
1782, France, Sardinia, and the cantons of Switzerland had 
intervened, established an aristocratic constitution, and pro- 
vided that in case of war Geneva was to be declared neutral. 

In September, 1792, the Genevese, frightened at the pro- 
jects of France, called in support from Berne and Zurich. They 
held that they had a right to do this on the ground that the 
treaty of 1584 was not set aside by that of 1782. Brissot, in a 
report on the subject, October 16, asserted that the treaty of 
1584 was abrogated and that the Genevese had no right to call 
in the troops. But while declaring that the part of the treaty 
of 1782 which guaranteed the neutrality of Geneva must be 
preserved, he asserted at the same time that the other part of 
that treaty, that which guaranteed the aristocratic constitu- 
tion, must be abandoned as unworthy of the recognition of the 
French nation. ^ 

Meanwhile, Montesquieu was carrying on negotiations with 
Geneva, and on October 22 signed a treaty, by which Geneva 
engaged to have the Swiss troops removed by the 1st of the 

* Moniteur, October 4, 1792. He made this report ia the name of the Com- 
mission extraordinaire. 

^ Moniteur, October 17, 1792. See also Sorel, L'Europe et la Revolution 
Jrangaise, iii, 122-26. 



314 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

succeeding January, on condition that the French troops with- 
draw immediately after the ratification of the treaty. The 
agreement, however, had nothing to say of a proscription of the 
aristocrats nor of the abrogation of the guaranty of the con- 
stitution of 1782. The 2d of November Montesquieu made an- 
other report, which, while it included some modifications in the 
interests of France, still maintained the constitution of 1782. 
For this failure the Convention censured Montesquieu, and on 
the motion of the Diplomatic Committee, presented by Brissot 
November 21, criticized the terms of the treaties, but at the 
same time made the best of the situation by setting forward 
the date of the evacuation of Genevese territory, not only by 
the French but by the Swiss troops.^ 

While thus contending openly against aristocratic govern- 
ments in Switzerland, Brissot was privately considering the 
situation with regard to Spain. On November 26 he wrote in 
most incendiary terms to Servan that it was necessary to de- 
clare war on Spain; that there would not be peaceful liberty for 
France so long as there was a Bourbon on the throne ;2 and that 
in order to assure the triumph of the Revolution and the defeat 
of its enemies, Europe must be set on fire. Meantime Spanish 
America must be aroused.^ To accomplish this purpose Bris- 
sot set actively to work. He first entered into negotiations 
with a young Spaniard, Marchena by name, with the idea of 
stirring up revolutionary propaganda in Spain.* He next 
turned his attention to the Spanish possessions in the new 
world. The outcome of the latter undertaking was the pro- 
posed expedition of Genet to drive the Spaniards from the 
Mississippi. Ever since his American travels, Brissot had been 

^ Moniieur, November 22, 1792. 

2 Note particularly the same expression in his letter to Dumouriez of No- 
vember 28, 1792. Correspondance, 314. 

3 Letter to Servan, November 26, 1792. Collection Charavay; printed by 
Perroud in the Correspondance, 312. Mallet du Pan, in his Considerations sur la 
nature de la Revolution de France, 37, quotes from this letter. See also Brissot's 
letters to Dumouriez of November 28, December 2, and 9, 1792; Correspon- 
dance, 314-20. 

* See pp. 360-61; also Goetz-Bernstein, 323. 



THE CONVENTION 315 

keenly interested in the western development of the United 
States; he had written of it at length in his Nouveau Voyage, 
had tried to advance various schemes for the sale of lands, and 
had been ready to risk financial investments.'^ He was now 
consulted as an authority on the subject, and on January 25, 
1792, he was asked by the Committee of General Defense to 
report on the possibility of an expedition against the Spanish 
dependencies. 2 That there was abundant prospect of success 
in such an expedition he was thoroughly convinced, especially 
in view of the hostile attitude of the western settlers toward 
Spain. As to the best means of procedure, he consulted with 
the members of his party, as well as with Thomas Paine and 
the Americans whom he often met at Paine's house. His own 
plan seems to have been to make use of Miranda and thirty 
thousand troops from Santo Domingo to aid in securing the 
independence of Louisiana.^ In his letter to Servan, referred 
to above, he spoke of Miranda's courage and genius and ex- 
pressed the belief that it would be an easy matter for him to 
free the inhabitants of the western lands from the chains forged 
for them by Pizarro and Cortez.* It was finally decided to send 
Genet, an appointment for which Brissot himself was respon- 
sible.^ Hitherto Genet's chief mission has been considered to 
be his efforts to fit out privateers for France and to enlist en- 
thusiasm for his cause through popular societies; but its real 
importance lay in the plans by which he proposed, through 
the help of American frontiersmen, to wrest Louisiana from the 

^ See chap. iv. 

2 Aulard, Recueil des actes de la Comite de Salut public, ii, 10, and iii, 82. 

^ Lettre a Dumouriez, December 2, 1792; Correspondance, 317. See also arti-« 
cle by Turner cited below. 

* Lettre a Servan, November 26, 1792; again in Correspondance, 312-13, 
See also Brissot's own letter to Miranda dated November 11, 1792; Corrc' 
spondance, 303-04. 

^ Otto, a former secretary in the foreign oflSce, declared in 1797 that it was 
Brissot who proposed Genet as minister to the United States. (Turner, Ameri- 
can Historical Review, iii, 654.) See also the statement of Brissot at his trial, 
the Interrogatoire. Madame Roland makes the same assertion in MSmoires, i, 
265-66. 



316 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

hands of their common enemy and thus benefit France.^ The 
persistent neutraHty of the United States, however, and the fall 
of the Girondins at home led to Genet's recall and to the failure 
of an expedition which was important in its inception and 
origin, if not in its results. 

The Genet affair had been managed by the Committee of 
General Defense. This committee came into existence early in 
1793, on account of the growing complexity of foreign affairs, 
and soon began to perform the functions formerly exercised by 
the Diplomatic Committee. It was composed of members from 
several different committees and included Brissot as a repre- 
sentative of the Diplomatic Committee. Under its direction 
was carried out some of the most important work undertaken 
by the Convention; the army and ministry of war were re- 
organized, many places on the frontier were annexed and ex- 
traordinary powers were granted to the deputies on mission. ^ 

With the conquest of Belgium had come the opening of the 
Scheldt.^ England and Holland had been especially exasperated 

^ Frederick J. Turner, "The Origin of Genet's Projected Attack on Loui- 
siana and the Floridas," in the American Historical Review, July, 1898, iii, 
650-71. Also "Documents on the Relations of France to Louisiana," 1792- 
1795, American Historical Review, April, 1898, iii, 490-516. See also Instruc- 
tions to Genet, December, 1792; in Correspondence of French Ministers, 1791- 
1798, ed. by Frederick J. Turner; Annual Report of the American Historical 
Association, 1903, ii, 201-07. 

* This Committee of General Defense was organized in accordance with a 
decree passed by the Assembly, January 1, 1793. It met for the first time 
January 4. The three sessions a week which it had arranged to hold proving 
insufficient for the amount of work to be transacted, daily sessions — some- 
times even two sessions a day — became necessary. From January 4 to March 
26, when it was reorganized, twenty-four sessions were recorded. To the re- 
organized committee Brissot was not elected. His work in relation to foreign 
affairs belongs, therefore, to the early months of the Convention. It is to be 
noted in passing that the Committee of General Defense was the forerun- 
ner of the great Committee of Public Safety, and the powers granted to it 
distinctly foreshadowed the powers afterwards granted to that committee. 
In this connection it is interesting to realize that Brissot, the man of all others 
who is often thought to have been opposed to the whole order and policy of the 
Committee of Public Safety, was one of the most important members of its 
predecessor. Aulard, Recueil des actes de Comiti de Salut public, i, 389, 401. 

' Proclaimed by the French ministers, November 16, 1792. See Moniteur, 
November 22, 1792. 



THE CONVENTION 317 

by this action, and with reason. For this river had been closed 
to seagoing vessels by the treaty of Miinster and also by sub- 
sequent treaties, with the object of diverting trade from Ant- 
werp to Amsterdam, and thus benefiting the Dutch, and it had 
remained closed ever since 1648. If it were now made a free 
river, both London and Amsterdam would suffer loss of trade 
which would instead go to enrich Antwerp and with Antwerp 
all Belgium. In his plan of defense before the revolutionary 
tribunal, Brissot disclaimed having had anything to do with 
this decree. It was ordered, he declared, by the executive 
council without informing the Diplomatic Committee. At the 
time, however, the Patrioie Frangais spoke of the action with 
enthusiasm, alluding to the noble destiny of France "to undo 
everywhere the errors of the people and the crimes of des- 
pots." 1 

In whatever light it may have appeared to French enthu- 
siasts, this "undoing of the crimes of despots" seemed to Eu- 
rope an unwarrantable interference on the part of France in 
the affairs of her neighbors. It was deeply resented by England 
especially and was one of the causes of the war between Eng- 
land and France. In bringing on this war Brissot, it was al- 
leged, had a large share — a charge which he vehemently de- 
nied. In his Projet de defense before the revolutionary tribunal, 
he declared that both as a representative of the people and as 
a citizen he had on £he contrary done everything in his power 
to prevent that war.^ There is much truth in his claim, at 
least as far as his attitude up to the king's trial is concerned, 
but at the same time that he was talking about peace and an 
alliance, he was furthering those very measures — such as the 
annexations and the opening of the Scheldt — which were mak- 
ing war inevitable. Ever since the spring of 1792, when war 
was declared against Prussia and Austria, he had been closely 
connected, both through his relation to the Girondin ministry 
and his membership in the Diplomatic Committee, with efforts 
to secure, first, the alliance, and when that seemed no longer 
1 Patriate Frangais, November 22, 1792. * M6moires, ii, 308. 



318 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

possible, the neutrality, of England. It was he, moreover, who 
together with Condorcet recommended the young Julien, who 
was sent to England early in the autumn of 1792 to disseminate 
correct information as to the situation in France, in order that 
war might be prevented.^ 

To prevent foreign war was, indeed, the chief ground of his 
argument for an appeal to the people at the time of the king's 
trial. The opinion that Europe was coming to take of the 
French Revolution, he declared, in a speech before the Con- 
vention on January 1, was not sufficiently heeded. Foreign 
governments would only welcome the condemnation of the 
king by the Convention, because it would give them the 
chance, which they would eagerly seize, to stir up popular feel- 
ing against the government of France. Again, there was danger 
that if the Convention itself made the decision, it might be 
accused of corruption if it were lenient to the king; of cruelty, 
if it were severe. The judgment of the people, on the other 
hand, would be sure to be just, impartial, and free from all 
foreign influence. Also it would show to foreign powers that 
the Convention was not influenced by sudden emotion, but by 
lofty and just principles, and, moreover, that back of the Con- 
vention was a united nation. If, therefore, the judgment of 
death should be pronounced, there would be less probability 
of war if the nation made the decision than if the Convention 
made it alone. ^ 

Within two weeks Brissot spoke again on the war question, 
this time in behalf of the Committee of General Defense and 
in a somewhat different tone. It was a lengthy and eloquent 
argument that the complaints of the British government 
against France were not well founded, and that, on the con- 
trary, France had just complaints to make against Great Brit- 
ain and ought to take vigorous measures to repel her aggres- 

1 See letters of Brissot, September 15, 1792, and letter of Julien, September 
19, 1792. Affaires eirangeres, Angleterre, p. 582, f. 143; Sorel, L'Europe et la 
RSvolidion franqaise, iii, 141, and Correspondance, 299.. 

* MoniteuT, January 3, 1793. 



THE CONVENTION 319 

sion. England withdrew her ambassador after August 10, he 
complained. She ought to have reinstated her ambassador after 
the meeting of the Convention, for the action of the Conven- 
tion was the sanction by all France of the deeds of the Legis- 
lative Assembly. England, moreover, had taken measures 
against the grain trade of France and against her assignats, and 
at the same time, she was not allowing Frenchmen free entry 
into England, and was protecting French rebels and increasing 
her armament. As for the complaints of England against 
France, the invasion of Savoy was made necessary by the 
hostile preparations of the king, and the annexation of Savoy 
was the desire of its people; and in the same way the invasion 
of the Low Countries was justified. K France interfered in 
aiding the Belgians to secure their rights, the English held 
Holland under the yoke of the Stadtholder. The opening of 
the Scheldt, he admitted, was a violation of the Peace of 
Utrecht and of other treaties, but it was not a violation of the 
principles of eternal justice. The English people did not really 
want war and ought to be made to understand that France did 
not either, but that she was being forced into it by the attitude 
of the English government. And finally, if worse came to 
worst England was not ready for war. Since the war with 
America she had been obliged to increase her taxes enormously 
and was in no position to add to them further by another war. 
This speech Brissot closed by presenting the decrees drawn 
up by the Committee. The first of these, by its declaration of 
the desire to preserve harmony and fraternity with the English 
nation, and of intention to respect the independence of England 
and of her allies as long as they did not attack France, seemed 
to tend toward peace and to give point to Brissot's contention 
in his plan of defense that he did not want war and was en- 
deavoring to prevent it.^ The remaining propositions of the 
decree were, however, of a decidedly belligerent tone. The 
executive council was charged to ask of the English govern- 
ment the execution of article IV of the treaty of 1786; in 
1 MSmoires, n, 308. 



320 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

other words, to allow French citizens to reside and travel in 
England without the humiliating restrictions to which they 
had been subjected. The executive council was also to ask that 
Frenchmen, like other foreigners, be allowed to export grain 
freely from England (in accordance with the provisions of the 
treaty of 1786); and finally to demand a categorical answer 
from England as to the object of its recent armament; it being 
understood that if this armament were directed against France, 
and if the English government did not give satisfaction on all 
the points specified, the French government would immedi- 
ately take the measures which the interest and security of the 
Republic demanded — in other words — declare war.^ 

Although Brissot subsequently protested that he was speak- 
ing here not for himself but for the Committee, the very fact 
that he gave the report and in no way protested against it lays 
upon him the responsibility for it. There exists, moreover, a 
good reason for greater belligerency on his part just at this 
juncture. This evidence is a letter addressed to Brissot by G. 
Martin, dated December 31, 1792, and apparently sent from 
London. The writer appears to be an agent working in the 
interest of France. At all events, he sends off a message post- 
haste to Brissot that he has just learned through a trustworthy 
source that there has been dispatched from London to the 
three courts of Berlin, Vienna, and St. Petersburg a most im- 
portant note. In this note, the writer asserts, they are urged 
to instruct their ambassadors and agents at London to con- 
cert together immediately on plans for military operations; 
they are assured that there will be no trouble about subsidies, 
and Russia is exhorted to furnish sixty thousand troops. They 
are further informed that public opinion is becoming favorable 
to the war, and further that the approaching "catastrophe" 
of Louis XVI, which may be regarded as certain, \^dll be all 
that is necessary to arouse public opinion to energetic action.'^ 

^ Moniteur, January 15, 1793. 

2 Affaires etrangeres, Angleterre, 29 Supplement, 340. See Appendix A. It 
is true that just at this time Lord Grenville began to negotiate with foreign 



THE CONVENTION 321 

This letter, which Brissot could hardly have received before 
January 1, and which in the natural course of events he would 
have received before January 12, the date of his speech, is most 
significant, and is in itself enough to account for his change 
of view. That war was now inevitable, he was convinced. He 
was, therefore, ready to take measures to bring about its open 
declaration. 

The question of war was complicated by the trial of Louis 
XVI. That the king should be tried, and tried by the Conven- 
tion, both parties agreed, and contrary to the once accepted 
opinion, the Girondins took an active part in urging on the 
proceedings. On November 6, Valaze made a report setting 
forth the crimes of the king, and the next day Mailhe in the 
name of the Committee on Legislation presented a report, 
arguing that the king could and should be tried by the Conven- 
tion. Brissot thoroughly approved of this report and gave a 
lengthy resume of it in the Patriote FrangaisA That he should 
approve was only to be expected, considering his own denun- 
ciations of the king at various times, and especially his speech 
of July, 1791, on the responsibility of the king, in which he 
argued along much the same line as Mailhe. The decree pro- 
posed by Mailhe was enacted and the trial began. After long 
debate the questions involved were finally narrowed down to 
three: Was Louis guilty of conspiring against the nation? 
Should the judgmertt be subject to the sanction of the people? 
What should be the penalty? 

On the first question, Brissot, with the great majority of the 

deputies, simply voted "yes." ^ On the second question he had 

already expressed his views in his long and forcible speech of 

powers as to the conditions under which a common war might be waged against 
France. (See Lord Grenville to Lord Whitworth, Herrmann, Diplomatiscke 
Korrespondenzen, pp. 346-48; also Lord Grenville to M. le Comte de Woron- 
zow, December 28, 1792, British Museum, additional mss. 36814.) There is, 
however, no evidence of such definite propositions as those alleged. But 
whether the writer was correctly informed is not so important to the point at 
issue as that he communicated such a statement to Brissot. 

^ Patriote Frangais, November 8 and 9, 1792. 

* Proces-verbal de la Convention, volume for January, 1793, p. 212. 



S22 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

January 1, in which he had argued for the appeal to the people, 
chiefly on account of the effect it would have on the powers of 
Europe in making foreign war less probable. On this occasion 
he did not reiterate his former argument, but, as on the previ- 
ous question, simply voted "yes." ^ 

In spite of the efforts of Brissot and others of the same mind, 
424 members out of 767 voted against the appeal to the people. 
Brissot deeply regretted this decision, and on the third ques- 
tion — What should be the penalty? — he voted for death, but 
made an effort to secure postponement. Now that it had ac- 
tually come to the question of the execution of the king, he saw 
with renewed vividness the consequences. A few days before he 
had been ready to force the issue by demanding a categorical 
answer from England as to her intentions, and by so doing to 
throw the onus for commencing the war upon her. Now the 
execution of the king would, on the contrary, give ground to 
foreign nations for action and would throw the onus of war on 
France. This he was determined to prevent. "I see in the sen- 
tence of death," he declared, "the signal for a terrible war, a 
war which will cost my country a prodigious amount of blood 
and treasure." He therefore sought some other form of pun- 
ishment, a punishment which would unite as completely as 
possible justice and the interest of the public welfare, which 
would make the Convention respected by all parties, which 
would conciliate foreign nations, which would frighten tyrants, 
and would at the same time thwart the calculations of their 
cabinets, all of whom desired the death of Louis because they 
wanted to popularize the war. This punishment he found in 
the sentence of death, but with the suspension of execution till 
after the ratification of the constitution by the people. ^ On 
this vote, Brissot was again in a minority, the majority having 
voted for death. 

One more attempt, however, was made to secure delay, and 
in this Brissot used all his efforts. That such an attempt might 

1 Proces-rerbal de la Conrention, volume for January, 1793, f. 212. See also 
Moniteur, January 19, 1793. * Moniteur, January 20, 1793. 



THE CONVENTION 323 

easily give rise to suspicion of royalty, he was evidently aware, 
for he began his speech by protesting that he was actuated not 
by any desire to save the king from the just consequences of his 
deeds, but to further the best political interests of France. The 
immediate execution of the king, he declared, would not further 
those interests, but would, on the contrary, eliminate a number 
of the friends of France, and increase the number of her 
enemies. In fact, there would be danger of a universal war. 
"I say more," he continued, speaking with a frankness and 
a realization of the danger which he had not shown before, 
"you have not a moment to lose in preventing it. If Louis is 
executed, it will be necessary to declare war to-morrow against 
England, Holland, and Spain, against all the tyrants of Europe; 
because it is inevitable on their part, not so much because they 
will be irritated by the death of Louis, but because all these 
tyrants, resolved as they are to crush our liberty, and with our 
liberty that of all Europe, will believe that they have found in 
that death a pretext in the eyes of their people. Now are you 
ready for this universal war? . . . Although there is every- 
where great disorder in our armies, although by reason of a 
conspiracy of which we must soon know the source, you have 
not even a few thousand soldiers on the Pyrenees, where at this 
moment there ought to be more than forty thousand French- 
men protecting the tri-colored flag; yet let our liberty be com- 
promised and you will see springing up everywhere, as out of 
the ground, armies, treasures, and soldiers. But to make war 
for a single individual ! Ought we to risk the entire exhaustion 
of our finances, the loss of our colonies, the enervation of our 
commerce? Ought we to waste so much treasure and blood 
for a most contemptible man?" ^ 

In spite of all pleas for delay, the king was condemned and 
executed. Brissot made no further efforts to avoid war, but 

^ Moniteur, January 24, 1792. During the trial the reports of the meetings 
of the Convention were signed by Girey-Dupre, who wrote in explanation: 
"Brissot est son juge, comme reprSseniant du peuple; il ne faut pas quil soil 
soupQonne de le juger comme journaliste." 



324 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

instead renewed his demands for hostilities with England, de- 
claring that war was now inevitable, but laying on England 
the blame for it. And on February 1, 1793, on the motion of 
the Committee of General Security, presented by Brissot, the 
Convention declared war on England and Holland.^ For a re- 
turn to his previous position, Brissot was in a measure justi- 
fied. War had indeed become inevitable, but it was not only 
the execution of the king but the whole aggressive policy of 
France that had made it so, and it was Brissot who, as a G iron- 
din, had largely directed that policy. ^ 

This propaganda of political equality, which was resulting 
in war, had, as M. Jaures points out in his Histoire socialiste, 
turned thought more and more to questions of social equality. 
"As political equality," says M. Jaures, "became a more 
certain fact, it was social inequality which gave most offense. 
The Revolution, by the death of the king, by the universal 
war, assumed growing responsibilities for humanity. How 
could it meet these responsibilities if it did not demonstrate to 
all men that it truly desired the good of all, and that without 
leveling conditions it wished at least to assure the independence 
and the well-being of the entire people." ^ In this question, 
Brissot was keenly interested. He had realized the suspicion to 
which the advocates of equality would be exposed — that of 
being hostile to the right of property. Indeed, he had already 
been attacked on that ground and had vigorously defended 
himself. But while upholding the right of property, he was 
intensely democratic in his sympathies, both politically and 

^ Moniteur, February 2, 1793. For an account of the English point of view 
see Rose, William Pitt and the Great War. 

2 The Girondins meanwhile had been engaged in drawing up a constitution. 
Curiously enough, considering his interest in constitution-making, Brissot 
seems to have had very little to do with the preparation of this one. He was 
appointed a member of the committee entrusted with the work, but his place 
was soon taken by Barbaroux. Aulard, Histoire politique, 280. M. Aulard 
does not state his authority. While a member of this committee Brissot man- 
aged to have his friend, David Williams (see p. 25), invited to come over to 
France to aid in drawing up the constitution. Brissot, Correspondance, 305-06. 

^ Jaures, Histoire socialiste, v, 1012-15. 



THE CONVENTION 325 

socially. His democratic point of view is well summed up in 
an article in the Patriote Frangais of December 28, 1792, en- 
titled L'^galite de fait. In every democracy, he argued, the 
laws ought to destroy and prevent too great de facto inequality 
between citizens. At the same time institutions favorable to 
equality ought to be introduced without commotion, without 
violence, and with all due respect for the first of the social rights, 
property. "The division of land proposed by the anarchists," 
he continued, "or the Coblenziens, would be a fatal measure; 
it would be unjust, useless, and murderous: unjust, in that it 
would despoil the legitimate owners; useless, because the next 
day after the division, the indolence, the luxury of the majority 
would bring about again, by means of sales, the inequality of 
possession; murderous, in that before the division was fin- 
ished, citizens would cut each others' throats; in that, again, 
all industry would be extinguished and that within a little 
while millions of citizens would perish of famine and misery." 
There were other measures, he went on, which were less 
dangerous and at the same time more conducive to real equality. 
Aside from equality of inheritance between children, which he 
assumed was beyond question, he would' propose the abolition 
of all inheritance in the collateral line. Property bequeathed in 
this way should revert to the state and should be distributed 
every year, in each district, to virtuous and industrious young 
people. There would be no injustice in this measure, he argued. 
To allow a man, during his lifetime, to use his property as he 
pleased was just, but to permit him to control it after his death 
was most unjust. The rights and duties of man derived their 
origin from the needs of the human race; a man after his death, 
having no more needs, could have no more rights. That a logi- 
cal application of this principle would lead to the abolition of 
all inheritance, Brissot admitted. It was true that children 
were allowed to inherit the property of their fathers only by a 
concession of society, but since the relation between father and 
child was peculiarly intimate, it was a concession which society 
might legitimately make. The abolition of inheritance in the 



326 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

collateral line need therefore arouse no fear, in the minds of 
the cautious, of an abolition of all inheritance. 

As a second step toward equality, Brissot proposed to ex- 
empt from all taxation what was necessary for the physical 
life of every citizen. Humanity and equity, he declared, cried 
aloud for such a law. Taxes should be borne by the rich; should 
touch only factitious needs; they should not be laid on physical 
necessities. The result of such a reform would be less unhap- 
piness, less inequality.^ 

But while thus engaged in trying to further social readjust- 
ment in the interests of democracy, Brissot saw its dangers, 
especially when it came to practical application. In the hands 
of real patriots, among whom he included himself, he was con- 
vinced that democracy would not be in any respect harmful, but 
under the influence of interested and unscrupulous leaders, the 
people might easily be flattered into an undue sense of their 
own importance and led into excess. In fact, this had already 
occurred, he declared, and in an article entitled "De la marche 
des agitateurs," published in the Chronique du Mois of Janu- 
ary, 1793, he tried to throw the responsibility for popular dis- 
content upon his opponents. There was a division among the 
patriots, he asserted; they had fought together against royalty, 
but they had not the same principles. The one party "sees in 
the new revolution the overturning of royalty, the establish- 
ment of the republic, and in the republic the perfection of 
human reason, the restitution of the worthy poor to a life 
of comfort; they see in it a perfect equality of rights, but an 
equality based upon law, upon respect for property and secu- 
rity, upon submission to constituted authority. That is not the 
idea of men who, despite the fact that they possess neither 
talent nor virtue, dare to aspire to high position and are filled 
with ambition." 

A striking instance of the application of theories of equality 
had occurred in the case of the workmen who were engaged on 

1 Patriote Frangais, December 29, 1792, quoted in Jaures, Histoire socialiste, 
IV, 1010-15. 



THE CONVENTION 327 

the camp for the federes at Paris. It was also a striking instance, 
according to Brissot, of the pernicious influence of the agitators. 
Under what was the virtual dictation of unscrupulous persons, 
these unfortunate workmen had presented a petition in which 
they had compared the smallness of their pay with the enor- 
mous compensation accorded to the deputies of the Convention, 
and had demanded that, as they both were working for the na- 
tion, their salaries should be adjusted more equitably.^ But, 
although Brissot decidedly disapproved of these specific de- 
mands, he was in favor, as is evident from his proposals cited 
above, of greater equalization of classes. 

But at the same time he was for equalization only in so far 
as it could be brought about without injuring the rights of any 
one class. For instance, apropos of a special war tax which it 
was proposed to lay on the rich, the Patriate Frangais ^ re- 
marked with regret that there would be no more equality, since 
the taxes would no longer be the same for all in proportion to 
their ability to pay,^ and a few days later the editor proposed, 
as a substitute, the principle of progressive taxation. Again, 
the Patriote Frangais approved the opposition of Barbaroux 
and Buzot to the forced loan of two hundred million francs 
from the rich,* and denounced the law of the maximum as in- 
volving an attack on the rights of property.^ 

It may be objected that this hostile attitude on the part of 
the Girondins was actuated, not so much by the nature of the 
measures proposed as by the fact that they were proposed 
by their enemies — the Mountain. This does not seem to have 
been true, however, in their attitude at first — whatever it may 
have been a few weeks later — toward the establishment of the 

* Patriate Frangais, October 6, 1792. 

* Brissot had by this time been forced to abandon the editorship of the 
Patriote Frangais, but there is no doubt that it continued to represent his pol- 
icy. 

' Patriote Frangais, March 11, 1792. 

* Ibid., May 22, 1793. See also Gomel, Histoire financiire de la Convention, 
I. 485-88. 

* Patriate Frangais, April 29, May 1, 1793. 



328 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

agencies of the Terror. The Patriote Frangais, though it ob- 
jected to the pubHcity of the votes of the jurors and the sever- 
ity of the rules regulating it, offered no persistent opposition 
to the establishment of the revolutionary tribunal/ and of the 
establishment of the Committee of Public Safety it spoke with 
indifference.^ The agencies by which the government was to 
be carried on seemed less important to the contending parties 
than did the agents, and neither party in the eyes of the other 
was fit to be trusted with the reins of government, — the 
Mountain because they were demagogues and anarchists, the 
Girondins because they were federalists and royalists. And 
now that the war problem was becoming more critical, the 
struggle, which had been going on since the opening of the Con- 
vention but which had been less bitter during the discussion on 
foreign relations and the king's trial, was renewed with violence 
and became a combat to the death, with no quarter. 

In this combat, Brissot was one of the most active fighters. 
Early in February, a special attack was made on him based on 
a letter in the possession of the Committee of General Secu- 
rity, said to be signed "Brissot de Warville" and containing 
distinctly royalist sentiments. Brissot defended himself in his 
paper, declaring that he had not signed himself "Brissot de 
Warville" since June 19, 1791,^ and on February 15, he reiter- 
ated his defense before the Convention. The letter, he as- 
serted, was found among the papers of one of the committees 
of the Commune, was originally signed " Watteville," and some 
malicious person had changed "Watteville" to "Warville" and 
had prefixed "Brissot de." How it had come into the hands of 
the Committee of General Security he did not know. To this 
defense Bazire replied that the letter did not come from the 
Commune, but that it was discovered among the papers of La- 
porte; that the original signature was "Brissot de Warville"; 
that the whole signature was evidently written by the same 
hand and at the same time and with the same ink, and that an 

» Patriate Frangais, March 12, 13, 1793. « Ibid., March 28, 1793. 
» Ibid., February 11, 1793. 



THE CONVENTION 329 

effort had been made to erase it. After a violent dispute Bris- 
sot won a temporary victory, by securing the passage of a de- 
cree which instead of deciding the matter at once referred it to 
a committee for investigation.^ 

A few weeks later, the Mountain made a general onslaught 
on the Girondin newspapers. Jeanbon Saint- Andre led the 
attack by his speech on March 8. "On the pretext of an ap- 
parent impartiality," he declared, "like the iron bed of the old 
tyrant, they stretch out or mutilate to suit their taste the 
opinions which are set forth at the tribune. They cut the ideas 
of the members who displease them in order to favor one side 
and to present the other under the most unfavorable light. 
They mislead public opinion, they cruelly abuse the liberty 
which we accord to the press." ^ As a result of this speech it 
was decreed the following day "that members of the Conven- 
tion who conduct newspapers must choose between the profes- 
sion of journalist and that of representative of the people." ' 
Brissot chose the second alternative, and from this time the 
Patriate Frangais was conducted under the direction of Girey- 
Dupre. But, although Brissot's nominal connection with the 
paper ceased, it continued to represent his views and to be an 
organ of the Girondin party.* 

Meanwhile the failure of Dumouriez's campaign in Belgium 
had aroused the mob, of Paris, and on March 9 they led a popu- 
lar movement against the Girondins, which was the prelude of 
the events of May 31 and June 1. Brissot, on hearing the news, 
rushed off to warn the ministers of what was going on.^ He 
had reason to be alarmed; for the mob, not content with the 
decree of the Convention against the Girondin newspapers, 
took the matter into their own hands and began to break the 

^ Moniteur, February 17, 1793. See also Proces-verbal de la Convention, vol- 
ume for February, p. 246. 

2 Moniteur, March 10, 1793. » Ibid., March 11, 1793. 

* According to the testimony of Girey-Dupre at the trial of Marat, Brissot 
carefully observed the law and never furnished him with any material to be 
inserted in the Patriote Frangais. Bulletin du tribunal revolutionnaire, no. 17. 

* Louvet, MSmoires, ed. by Aulard, i, 77. 



330 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

presses. It might naturally be supposed that the Patriote 
Frangais would be one of the first attacked, but for some rea- 
son, never clearly explained, it escaped and the whole move- 
ment failed.^ But the attacks on the Girondins did not cease. 
Under the incentive of the Cordeliers, several of the sections 
of Paris denounced the Girondins to the Convention. "The 
evacuation of Belgium," their address declared, "is the work 
of an impious faction which paralyzes the Convention. The 
success of the enemies of France is due to the traitor Dumou- 
riez and to the odious intrigues of the Rolands, the Brissotins, 
and their friends, — they ought to be gotten rid of at any 
price. ^ 

Danton was the one man who tried with any zeal to check 
denunciations and substitute conciliation. He first tried to 
bring about greater unity of action by introducing a proposi- 
tion in the Assembly on March 11, that the ministers should 
be chosen from that body. This to the Girondins seemed 
merely a move toward a dictatorship. "They [the Mountain] 
believed," wrote the Patriote Frangais, "that it only remained 
to ascend the throne, they are already dividing up among them 
the various branches of the executive power — Danton 
mounted the tribune, sure of his success; he asked that the Con- 
vention reserve to itself the right of choosing the ministers 
from among its own members. No one doubted that Danton 
wished to be first of those ministers; they doubted it still less 
when they heard him swear by his country that he would never 
accept a place in the ministry. Danton swearing by the coun- 
try! The country of an ambitious man! It seems to me like an 
atheist swearing by the Supreme Being." ^ 

At the same time Danton tried to come to some agreement 
with the Girondins. In the case of Garat, the minister of jus- 
tice, who, though not of the inner circle, had been allied with 

^ Brissot in A ses Commettans assailed Garat, the minister of justice and a 
former ally of the Girondins, for not having taken steps against the conspira- 
tors. 

^ Mortimer Ternaux, Histoire de la Terreur, vi. 194. 

' Patriote Frangais, March 18, 1793. 



THE CONVENTION 331 

them, he seems to have met with some response. "I was al- 
ways saying to the members of the two sides," writes Garat 
in his memoirs, "drown your hatred and your quarrels, and 
then you can manage everything and all will be done accord- 
ing to law." ^ According to Marat, Guadet also wanted con- 
ciliation and tried to flatter Danton, but all other authorities 
agree that it was Guadet who refused to make peace. The 
Patriote Frangais, now under the direction of Girey-Dupre, 
denied with heat the assertion that Guadet had tried to flatter 
Danton and declared, on the contrary, that Guadet had at- 
tacked Danton as a plotter and intriguer. ^ Brissot was also 
approached and, according to his testimony at his trial, he was 
quite willing to discuss the matter. "Several times there was 
a question of reunion among the patriots," he testified. "To 
that end I had two meetings with Danton. Robespierre had 
been invited to join us, but he did not come. We entered into 
an explanation of our principles. Danton said to me: *We fear 
only one thing so far as you are concerned, that you are in favor 
of federalism.' I had no diflBculty at all in proving to him that 
that fear had little ground, and we separated each satisfied with 
the other." ^ Brissot's attitude as reflected in these remarks 
appears to be rather favorable to conciliation, but it is to be 
observed that here he was chiefly concerned in disproving the 
charge of federalism. In his address to his constituents, he 
took a decidedly different tone and apropos of Garat's willing- 
ness to join in conciliation, spoke with vehemence of the im- 
possibility of "establishing a permanent alliance between vir- 
tue and crime." 

At all events, Danton's attempt came to naught, and when 
to the failure of the campaign in Belgium was added the actual 
treason and flight of Dumouriez, conciliation was no longer 
possible. Instead, the battle between the Girondins and the 
Mountain was waged with redoubled fury. The Mountain, 

^ Garat, MSmoires sur la RSvolution, 94. 

2 Patriote Frangais, March 24, 1793. 

' Moniteur, October 27, 1793, Supplement. 



332 BRISSOT DE WAEVILLE 

wild with rage, declared that Dumouriez and the Girondins 
had formed a vast conspiracy to restore monarchy in France 
and to annihilate the republicans with the Republic. On the 
3d of April, Robespierre specifically charged Brissot with being 
implicated in the diabolical plot. " Brissot," argued the " Incor- 
ruptible," "was and is the intimate friend of Dumouriez; Brissot 
has never lost an occasion for defending Dumouriez; Brissot 
and Dumouriez together first proposed the war with Austria; 
Brissot and his partisans made Dumouriez commander-in- 
chief; Brissot holds in his hands all the threads of this wicked 
conspiracy. The first measure of public safety to be taken is 
to indict all those who are accused of complicity with Dumou- 
riez and notably Brissot." To this attack Brissot replied on 
the spot, but his defense lacked cogency and ingenuousness. 
He denied in toto that he had assisted in any way in procuring 
Dumouriez's appointment to the ministry, and he threw the 
blame for the war upon the Legislative Assembly, ignoring his 
own part both in that body and in the Convention as an ad- 
vocate of war. In his reply to the accusation of wishing to re- 
establish the monarchy, he omitted to mention his attitude at 
the crisis of the Revolution, but based his defense upon a part 
of his career which in no way affected existing events. "Can 
a man be accused of loving kings," he asked, "who was de- 
voted to republicanism a long time before his accuser; a man 
who in 1782 was shut up in the Bastille for having put forth 
principles then frowned upon; a man who in 1788 quitted his 
country to go to the United States to breathe the air of liberty, 
and especially to prevent his children from being contami- 
nated by the presence of a tyrant?" 

The charge of treasonable complicity with Dumouriez had 
no real ground, but the Girondins and Brissot in particular had 
been in friendly relations with Dumouriez, and his desertion 
furnished the Mountain with exactly what they needed for a 
telling accusation. Only a few days before his desertion, the 
Patriote Frangais had praised him to the skies, and at the same 
time cast aspersions on the motives of the Jacobins for speak- 



THE CONVENTION 333 

ing of him with high praise. "That faction thinks," declared 
the Patriate Frangais, "that by unworthy flatteries it can win 
over to its side a man whom it fears. It flatters him because 
the heroes of the 2d of September do not dare to measure 
themselves up against the hero of the 20th of September. But 
this is an idle hope. Dumouriez is not going to mingle his lau- 
rels with their cypress. Dumouriez loves glory, he would not 
be willing to share their infamy. Dumouriez loves his country, 
he will save it in company with the republicans, he will not 
destroy it in company with the anarchists. " ^ After such an 
outburst on the part of the Patriote Frangais, the desertion of 
Dumouriez was a staggering blow to the Girondins. 

The opportunity was too good to be lost, and was seized by 
the Mountain and their adherents in the Commune. On April 8 
the section of Bonconseil sent a delegation to the Convention, 
demanding that Brissot and his adherents be brought to trial. 
A few days later, Robespierre furiously attacked the Girondins, 
while Vergniaud, Guadet, and Petion repelled the assault and 
hurled back the accusation of bad faith and treasonable in- 
tent.^ Henceforth the struggle between the parties became 
more violent. The Girondins assailed Marat as the most vul- 
nerable of their enemies and concentrated their attacks upon 
him. Considering the nature of his assaults on members of 
their party, they had good reason for indignation. For instance, 
such an attack as appeared in the Ami du Pewple of February 
12, 1793, would naturally arouse their wrath: "Persons who 
are well informed state that Brissot is enormously rich, in spite 
of the airs of poverty which he affects. He is said to have in- 
vested eight hundred thousand livres in the Bank of London, 
and it is stated as an established fact that his wife has just ac- 
quired three fine houses in the best quarter of London." ' 

1 Patriote Frangais, March 12, 1793. 2 Moniteur, April 12, 1793. 

' "Les personnes instruites assurent que Brissot est enormement riche, malgrS 
les airs de pauvrcte qu'il affiche. II passe pour avoir place 800,000 livres sur la 
banque de Londres, et on donne pour unfait constant que safemme vient defaire 
I 'acquisition de trois belles maisons dans le plus beau quartier de Londres." L 'Ami 
du Peuple, February 12, 1793. 



834 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The Glrondins still possessed a majority in the Convention, 
and on April 13, by almost superhuman efiForts, they carried a 
vote sending Marat before the revolutionary tribunal for trial. ^ 
Marat immediately retaliated, and in a letter to the Conven- 
tion denounced "Dumouriez and his accomplices" in the Con- 
vention itself, — namely, Salle, Barbaroux, Gensonne, La- 
rousse, Brissot, Guadet, Buzot, and Vergniaud, — for having 
demanded a decree of accusation against him. He declared, 
further, that he would regard the decree rendered against him 
as legitimate only when a like decree should be rendered against 
those whom he accused, and that only then would he obey the 
decree which put him under arrest.^ Brissot, on his part, ap- 
parently could not let Marat alone. One of the witnesses at 
the trial of Marat had testified that a notice had appeared 
in the Patriote Frangais of April 16 to the effect that a young 
Englishman, who had lately come to France in order that he 
might enjoy the liberty there established, had committed sui- 
cide when he found that Marat had destroyed that liberty. 
Girey-Dupre, the editor of the Patriote Frangais, was then 
questioned and admitted that he had received the note from 
Brissot, but that the responsibility for its insertion in the Pa- 
triote Frangais was his own.^ An attempt was then made to 
bring Brissot before the tribunal, but, although a note was sent 
to the president of the Convention, demanding that Brissot be 
summoned to give testimony, the Convention paid no atten- 
tion to it and Brissot did not testify. The Girondins, mean- 
while, waited with supreme confidence Marat's conviction. 
Their disappointment and dejection were correspondingly great 
when the tribunal acquitted Marat and the rabble bore him 
back in triumph to the Convention. 

This was a decisive blow to the Girondins. At the same time 
they received another blow — an address from the sections of 
Paris demanding the dismissal of twenty-two Girondin mem- 
bers of the Convention, Brissot's name heading the list of the 

* Moniteur, April 16, 1793. ^ Archives parlementaires, lxii, 23-24. 
' Bulletin du tribunal rSvolutionnaire, nos. 16, 17. 



THE CONVENTION 335 

proscribed. This address, as well as the denunciations which 
Robespierre had made in his speech a few days before, Brissot 
hastened to answer. At the head of his pamphlet of defense, 
he placed a quotation from Rousseau as summarizing his own 
position : " I am growing old in the midst of my furious enemies, 
without losing either courage or patience. My only defense 
is to present to heaven a heart free from guile and from all 
evil." He then launched into a general defense, which in its 
efforts to throw the blame on others was hardly in keeping with 
the lofty tone of his text. Whatever the accusation, it was not 
he himself who was guilty. It was not he who had chosen 
Dumouriez for the ministry, it was Petion who had recom- 
mended Miranda, it was the Convention which was respon- 
sible for the war. It was true, he admitted, that he had sus- 
tained Dumouriez as long as he had shown good principles, 
but since May, 1792, he had written to him only twice. ^ As 
for complicity with Orleans, he had advised him through Sil- 
lery to banish himself voluntarily, and had voted for his ex- 
pulsion. The charge, moreover, that he had been suborned 
by Pitt, either to maintain the king upon the throne or to save 
his life, was absolutely without foundation. It was not the 
king but France he was trying to save. And finally, the charge 
of leadership on his part was, he declared, not only false but 
ridiculous. 2 

However true his assertions may be in the main, this last 
statement hardly seems consistent with his well-known activ- 
ities and shows a not altogether courageous desire to sink 
into the background. 

The acquittal of Marat and the denunciations of the sec- 
tions to which the above was an answer mark the beginning of 
the end. Paris was now all but unanimous against the Giron- 
dins. The situation was one which demanded desperate reme- 

^ ^ M. Perroud, in his Correspondance de Brissot, 314-20, gives three letters 
written by Brissot to Dumouriez within this time. 

^ J. P. Brissot, depute a. la Convention, sur la denondation de Robespierre 
et sur I 'adresse pretie aux quarante-huit sections de Paris. 



336 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

dies. The Girondins decided to stake all upon a single throw, 
and on May 18 Guadet presented a motion that the Commune 
be dissolved and that the substitute delegates to the Conven- 
tion be summoned to meet at Bourges. But, at the critical 
moment, the Girondins lost heart and abandoned their own 
motion for a substitute motion offered by Barere, ordering the 
appointment of a committee of twelve which should report on 
the safety of the Convention. In the composition of this com- 
mittee, they won a temporary success, for all its members were 
Girondins, but it was not a permanent victory. 

This demand for an appeal to the provinces and for the 
election of a new Convention gave strength to the accusation 
of federalism which had already been hurled at the Girondins 
and which from this time on was made the chief charge of their 
indictment. It was now skillfully used by Camille Desmoulins, 
who, in a pamphlet entitled Fragment de Vhistoire secrete de 
la revolution, or as it was afterward called Histoire des Brissotins, 
struck quite as effective a blow as he had given a year before 
in his Jean Pierre Brissot demasque. The attack was well timed, 
the facts and the illustrations were cleverly introduced, and 
the insinuations made with great skill. As the title implied, 
it was not only an attack on Brissot personally, but on the 
whole policy with which he was connected. At the establish- 
ment of the Republic, Desmoulins declared, all was favorable 
for France, despotism had been swept away, liberty had been 
enthroned, the arms of France were victorious, the Conven- 
tion had a glorious career before it. What had prevented it 
from fulfilling this career? A conspiracy. That conspiracy was 
to be found in the Convention and Brissot was the heart and 
soul of it. He and the other Girondins had brought about for- 
eign war at a time when France was ill-prepared for it. As for 
Brissot himself, "that Jeremiah of the 2d of September," he 
had showed that he was only too ready to seek personal profit 
from the massacres by his complaint the very next day to 
the Executive Council, in the presence of Danton, that "they 
had forgotten Morande." Brissot asserted that he had little 



THE CONVENTION 337 

influence in obtaining places for his friends, but, sneered Des- 
moulins, behold this proof to the contrary, and he gleefully- 
commented on the letter written to Roland, in which he in- 
closed a list of those to whom he would like to have places 
given. ^ Brissot, moreover, was the accomplice of Dumouriez 
in bringing defeat to France and in trying to save the king, 
with the object of destroying the Republic. His real purpose 
was to divide France into twenty or thirty republics, or rather, 
if he could, to overturn the republican government altogether, 
and to set up the Duke of Orleans as monarch. The Mountain, 
declared Desmoulins, opposes Philippe figalite and has op- 
posed him at every step, but what is Brissot's position? He 
was a secretary in the house of Orleans, he was the author of the 
petition of the Champ de Mars, a petition which he obviously 
concerted in conjunction with Lafayette. Plainly he is an Orlean- 
ist and has been one from the beginning. And, worse than all, 
Brissot is in the pay of Pitt, and so guilty of the crime of treason. 

The whole pamphlet showed the utmost ingenuity and, like 
Desmoulins 's previous attack, it served to blast the credit of 
Brissot and of his party. Desmoulins himself is said to have 
spoken of it as both the precursor and the manifesto of the 
revolution of the 31st of May.^ 

Brissot, meanwhile, proceeded to assail the Mountain. Al- 
though his name appeared at the head of the lists of accused 
persons, he took little part in the final struggle in the Conven- 
tion, but, like Desmoulins, waged a violent combat with his 
pen. Deprived of the Patriate Frangais as a means of utter- 
ance, he prepared an address in pamphlet form to his con- 
stituents. It did not, however, directly answer Desmoulins's 
attack. Indeed, from the date of publication of Desmoulins's 
pamphlet, it is extremely doubtful if Brissot had seen it at the 
time he launched his own address.* While lacking the wit and 

» See p. 292. 

' See Desmoulins et Roch-Marcandier, ed. by Fleury, i, 333. 

* The Avis aux lecteurs at the beginning of Brissot's pamphlet is dated May 
22. The SocietS des Jacobins, at the meeting of May 1 9, 1793, ordered the print- 
ing and distribution of Desmoulins's address. 



838 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

brilliancy of Desraoulins's Histoire, it possesses clearness and 
force. Its significance is twofold. Unlike many of Brissot's 
political pamphlets, it dealt not with his personal career, but 
with his party. It showed, however, that his own point of 
view had midergone some decided changes. His purpose, he 
declared, was to prove that there existed a party of disorgan- 
izers and anarchists — by which, of course, he meant the Moun- 
tain, though he did not use that word — who dominated the 
Convention and the Executive Council; that that party was the 
only cause of all the evils which afflicted the country, both 
within and without, and that the Republic could be saved only 
by the most drastic measures. Beginning with the defensive, 
he asserted that the majority of the Convention — by which 
he meant the Girondins, although here again he did not use 
the party name — had sought to respect the law and to uphold 
constituted authorities. To this end they had asked for a de- 
partmental guard, denounced Robespierre and Marat, banished 
all the Bourbons, censured the massacres of September, asked 
for an appeal to the people at the trial of Louis XVI, and de- 
manded the convocation of the primary assemblies. They had 
oftentimes been frustrated, however, by that party of anar- 
chists which terrorized the Convention. These anarchists, 
Brissot declared, had protected the Pere Duchene and Marat; 
favored the law of the maximum; raised the sans-culottes 
against the bourgeois; used the Jacobin Club as an engine of 
despotism; reduced to a state of inertia the ministers, notably 
Garat,^ Pache,^ and Monge; ^ made the revolutionary tribunal 

» See p. 330. 

* Jean Nicholas Pache (bom 1746, died 1825) became minister of war under 
the Girondins in 1792, but as he did not agree with them, was replaced in Feb- 
ruary, 1793. He allied himself with the Mountain, became mayor of Paris, wa3 
one of the leaders in the insiu-rection of May 31, and for a time was allied with 
Hebert, but escaped prosecution. He was subsequently arrested, but profited 
by the amnesty of 1793 and retired to private life. 

* Gaspard Monge, the celebrated French geometrician, was bom in 1746. 
At the instigation of Condorcet he was named minister of marine after August 
10, which position he held till 1793. He was denounced as an ally of the Giron- 
dins, but escaped prosecution. 



THE CONVENTION S39 

an instrument of injustice, and favored its despotism; and by 
asking for the expulsion of members of the Convention, had 
attempted the iniquity of a second Pride's Purge. As the re- 
sult of their machinations, he called to witness the increase of 
crime, the attacks on property and security, the high price of 
bread, the deficit in the taxes, and the local disorders. A special 
and far-reaching cause for these disasters, he added, was the 
financial policy, and, forgetful of his own enthusiasm for the 
assignats, he went on to denounce their frequent and contin- 
ued issue. ^ Then, turning to foreign afiPairs, he upheld the war 
with Austria, and denounced the war with England, Holland, 
and Spain, as due to the decree of November 19, and also to 
the revolutionary propaganda in general, the massacres of 
September, and the death of Louis. As for the allegation that 
he had been in large part responsible for that war, he declared 
that, on the contrary, he had exhausted all his efforts in trying 
to prevent it. But once begun, he continued, it should have 
been undertaken on a larger scale. Spain should have been in- 
vaded; she was defended only by the Pyrenees, which were easy 
to cross, and by men who were brutalized by ignorance and 
by slavery. Her colony across the sea, Louisiana, might have 
been liberated; England might have been easily and success- 
fully attacked in the East or West Indies, or in India, or again 
through raising a revolt in Ireland; and the commerce of their 
enemies ought to have been attacked in the Mediterranean. 
Where the war was carried on it was a failure. This was due, 
he declared, not only to the mismanagement of Pache, but to 
the ideas of equality which had permeated the army and re- 
sulted in lack of discipline, and also in the attempt to force 
liberty on an unwilling people.'^ 

But since these mistakes had been made, and France was 

^ See p. 151. It is true that he upheld a more conservative policy in regard 
to the later issues. 

* On his attitude toward the decree of November 19, see p. 311; on his re- 
lation to the massacres of September, p. 301; on his speeches at the trial of 
the king, pp. 318-324; on his part in bringing on war, chap, ix; on discipline, 
p. 265. 



340 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

now defeated abroad, and a prey to civil disorder within, what, 
Brissot asked, was the remedy? It was to be found, he de- 
clared, in putting an end to the revolutionary government. 
The power of the Committee of Public Safety must be checked, 
and a constitution established. France would be respected 
abroad and have peace within only when the authority of an 
irresponsible committee should give place to a well-ordered 
government based on a constitution. But, to draw up a con- 
stitution, the Convention must be free from the control of 
the anarchists. Various means of gaining this freedom had been 
suggested which Brissot took up and considered in turn. The 
Convention might be transferred to Versailles, but that would 
not do away with the passions and divisions within; the swp- 
'pleants might be convoked in another city, but they were not 
very numerous and the opinion of the people could not be ob- 
tained by that means; the Convention might be increased in 
numbers, — that would only increase disorder; a draft of a new 
constitution might be presented at once to the primary assem- 
blies, but that could hardly be done in the existing turmoil. 
The most feasible thing, he concluded, after stating these vari- 
ous objections, would be to call a new Convention, and, follow- 
ing the example of the American Congress in providing for fed- 
eral control of the capital city, insure its perfect independence 
from any local interference. At all events, the immediate 
necessity was to provide by some means or other for the draw- 
ing up of a constitution by a free body.^ 

^ The pamphlet was translated into English under the title: "The Anarchy 
and Horrors of France displayed by a Member of the Convention." The pre- 
face, by an ardent admirer of Brissot, says: "I thought I could not at this 
crisis do my country a more acceptable service than in laying before it the fol- 
lowing faithful extracts from Mons. Brissot's address to his constituents. They 
are not the conjectures of the speculatist, nor the forebodings of the hypochon- 
driac, they are neither the reveries of the fancy nor the effusions of malice; 
but a plain detail of facts, by one of the principal actors in them, a true pic- 
ture of France drawn by an able artist, by one of the most capable hands in 
the whole Convention." 

Edmund Burke took a totally different point of view. He also published an 
English translation of the address with a preface in which he declared that if 
Brissot, himself a Jacobin, could draw such a picture, the case against Jacobin- 



THE CONVENTION 341 

Just here was the weak point of the Girondins. They pro- 
posed to bring about order by overthrowing the revolutionary 
government and estabhshing a constitution, and this in the 
face of actual and widespread civil war at home and a foreign 
war which was menacing their frontiers from the North Sea 
to the Pyrenees. And even granted that they were right, they 
were hopelessly divided as to the means to be used. But this 
was no time to talk about a constitution. If order were to be 
established within and foreign foes repulsed, not a constitu- 
tion, but immediate action by a centralized authority was 
imperative. This the Mountain perceived. They perceived, 
too, that in the revolutionary committee they had that cen- 
tralized authority, which must be backed up by force, if neces- 
sary, and force they had at their command in the Commune. 
Its use was precipitated by Isnard's ill-timed challenge that 
if any outrage should be attempted against the Convention, 
wanderers would soon be searching on the banks of the Seine 
for the ruins of Paris. The Commune responded by seizing 
the well-tried weapon of popular insurrection, and after an 
unsuccessful attempt on May 31, forced the Convention on 
June 2 to decree the arrest of the members of the Committee 
of Twelve, two ministers and twenty- two Girondins.^ 

The career of Brissot in the Convention was at an end. But 

ism was forever proved. Brissot's testimony, Burke declared, was that "of a 
witness beyond all exceptioh. ... It is Brissot, the republican, the Jacobin, and 
the philosopher, who is brought to give an account of Jacobinism, and of re- 
publicanism, and of philosophy. It is worthy of observation that this, his ac- 
count of the genesis of Jacobinism, and its effects, is not confined to the period 
in which the faction came to be divided within itself. In several and these very 
important particulars, Brissot's observations apply to the whole of the preced- 
ing period, before the great schism, and whilst the Jacobins acted as one body; 
— insomuch that the far greater part of the proceedings of the ruling powers — 
since the commencement of the Revolution in France, so strongly and so justly 
reprobated by Brissot — were the acts of Brissot himself and his associates. 
... A question will naturally be asked: What could induce Brissot to draw 
such a picture? He must have been sensible it was his own. The answer is — 
the inducement was the same with that which led him to partake in perpetra- 
tion of all crimes, the calamitous effects of which he describes with the pen of 
a master, — ambition." Burke's Works (Boston, 1884), v, 68. 
^ Proces-verbal de la Convention, volume for Jime, 1793, p. 29. 



342 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

he was only reaping what he had sown. As the chief member 
of the Diplomatic Committee, he had incmred much of the 
responsibility for involving France in a general European war; 
and now, since he and his party proved themselves incapable 
of waging a successful war, powerless to meet the danger they 
had invoked, because they had no settled policy, no united 
plan of action, they were rejected by the people, and cast out 
by the Convention, Such incapacity was criminal, and it in- 
volved more than their own ruin, for out of this war which they 
created and failed to direct sprang the Reign of Terror; and 
they, as the creators of the war, must bear in part the dread 
responsibility of having begotten the Terror. 

BRISSOT AND FEDERALISM 

One of the principal charges brought against the Girondins, 
and particularly against the Buzot wing of the party, was that 
of federalism. From the opening of the Convention in Sep- 
tember, 1792, throughout the remaining months of that year, 
at the trial of the king, during the spring of 1793, and finally 
at their trial, the Girondins were accused again and again of 
being federalists. The term "federalism," as used in these ac- 
cusations against the Girondins, meant an attempt to destroy 
the unity of France. In its wider significance, however, it was 
employed to designate the general hostility of the provinces 
against Paris. With federalism in this latter sense there is no 
doubt that the Girondins were in full sympathy. The ques- 
tion is, were they federalists in the guilty sense meant by their 
accusers? Did they plot to make France into a confederation 
instead of a republic, "one and indivisible"? 

As early as 1789 the possibility of a confederation was sug- 
gested. Witness an editorial which appeared in the Patriote 
Frangais of November, 1789: "The stand which the National 
Assembly has taken in decreeing the division of France into 
a number of departments, between seventy-five and eighty, 
ought to remove the reproach which has been made against the 
partisans of the cause of the people, of wishing to divide France 



THE CONVENTION 343 

into a certain number of confederated republics. A confedera- 
tion of eighty-five states would be a political monstrosity. A 
long-continued harmony between so many members of a con- 
federacy would be a miracle." 

Accusations of intention to form a confederated instead of a 
unified republic were again made in the republican crisis of 
the summer of 1791, and again Brissot came forward promptly 
to repudiate the charge. "What madman," he demanded, 
"has ever dreamed of making France into eighty- three repub- 
lics? The republicans, those at least that I know, desire only 
a republic or a representative government of which the eighty- 
three departments are eighty- three fractions, coordinated one 
with the other, and all meeting in a common point — the Na- 
tional Assembly." ^ And in his speech of July 10 against the 
king, he reiterated the same sentiments. 

A year later the struggle between the Legislative Assembly 
under the control of the Girondins and the Jacobin Commune 
of Paris again brought up the subject of the relation between 
Paris and the provinces, and this time it became a distinct 
party issue, charges being made specifically against the Giron- 
dins, of stirring up the provinces against Paris, and of striving 
to prevent the establishment of a unified republic.^ And when, 
on the meeting of the Convention, a republic, one and indi- 
visible, was established, the Mountain immediately raised the 
cry that the Girondins did not accept its unity and indivisi- 
bility, and were plotting for its destruction. This now became 
one of the main points of conflict between the parties. It was 
brought to the front again and again, and was one of the 
causes of the final downfall of the Girondins. 

One proof of the charge, the Mountain alleged, was the 
effort of the Girondins to establish a departmental guard. An- 
other proof was found in their alleged attitude toward annexa- 

' Patriote Franqais, July 8, 1791, quoted by Brissot in his Projet de difense, 
Mimoires, ii, 338-39. 

* " lis veulent, dit-on, arriver d, un etat fSderatif; or [sic] la guerre civile peut 
y mener." Pellenc to Lamarck, June 29, 1790. Glagau, 343. 



344 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

tions. This was presented with great vigor by Anacharsis 
Cloots, in a pamphlet entitled Ni Marat ni Roland. After 
setting forth in no complimentary terms his opinion of these 
two men, Cloots proceeded to report in detail sundry conver- 
sations with certain Girondins. Rebecqui, he declared, did not 
want Nice added to France, Buzot thought a republic could 
not well be larger than his own village, and Brissot considered 
France already too large and protested against the addition of 
Savoy. All of which showed, according to Cloots, opposition 
to the unity of the Republic on the one hand, and plans for 
federalism on the other. 

A third alleged evidence of federalism was the attempt of 
the Girondins to procure a vote in favor of an appeal to the 
primary assembhes on the question of the punishment of the 
king. Such a proposition was extremely offensive to the Moun- 
tain, who believed that measures against Louis were justified 
on the ground of political necessity. They forthwith accused 
the Girondins of advocating the appeal to the people with the 
express purpose of stirring up division and civil war.^ Amar 
repeated this same accusation at the time of the trial of the 
Girondins, declaring that the motive of the appeal to the peo- 
ple was the wish to destroy the Republic.^ 

The hostility of the Girondins to the city government of 
Paris constituted further proof of federalism in the eyes of their 
enemies. If this alone were conclusive, they would have to be 
pronounced guilty; for, from August 10, 1792, when the strug- 
gle between the Girondin Committee of Twenty-one began, 
down to the very last day of their political existence in the Con- 
vention, they were constantly at war with the authorities of 
Paris. Specific instances of this hostility were the accusations 
which they made against the Commune as responsible for the 
massacres of September; their attack on Robespierre for his 
alleged efforts to establish the dictatorship; the attack made 
by Buzot, January 13, 1793, on account of the action of the 

1 Speech of Marat, January 15, 1793. Monitevr, January 19, 1793. 
* Acte d' accusation, October 3, 1793. Moniteur, October 25, 1793. 



THE CONVENTION 345 

Commune in closing the theaters; the speech of Buzot, March 
27, in which he declared that the representatives were only 
ambassadors ^ from each part of the Republic; the inoppor- 
tune threat of Isnard, when he declared that if anything 
happened to the Convention, people would soon be search- 
ing along the Seine to find where Paris had once stood; and 
finally, the numerous attempts to appeal to the provinces, 
either by the convocation of the primary assembhes or by the 
removal of the Convention from Paris. 

The Girondins, it was further alleged, did not confine them- 
selves to words, but were stirring up the provinces to actual 
revolt. Point was given this accusation by the protests and 
addresses against Paris which began to come in as early as 
October, 1792. On the 20th of this month, the administrators 
of the Department of Calvados sent an address to the Conven- 
tion in which they called down maledictions upon whatever 
part of the Republic should try to rule the whole. ^ On Janu- 
ary 2, 1793, this department made another address to the Con- 
vention. "You are represented as exposed to tlie axe of the 
executioner," they wrote. "Paris, the cradle of liberty, is filled 
with proud and bloody agitators. . . . The citizens of Calvados 
in their impatience rise up, they hasten to inscribe their names 
in the civic registers, they want to set out to avenge your men- 
aced liberty. . . . They propose to sustain the work of their 
representatives or die." ^ Within a day or two the administra- 
tive Department of the Haute-Loire issued an appeal in terms 
quite as emphatic. "Citizens," they cried, "the agitators of 
Paris and the enemies of the Revolution are constantly con- 
spiring against it by flattering the people into believing that 
Paris is practically the exclusive sovereign of the republic of 
which it is only the eighty -fourth part. It permits itself to dic- 
tate decrees to the Convention at its pleasure, and thus pre- 
vents it from giving us a good constitution. The only means 
of remedying these abuses is to organize a departmental force 

1 This was in his speech of March 28, 1793. Moniieur, March 30, 1793. 
* Moniteur, October 21, 1792. ' Patriate Franqais, January 8, 1793. 



346 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

which shall be able to protect our legislators and make the law 
effective." ^ These appeals the Mountain regarded as attacks 
on the indivisibility of the Republic and a direct evidence of 
federalism, and when the appeals were backed by open insur- 
rection the Mountain saw again the hand of the Girondins and 
triumphantly asserted that there was undisputed proof of fed- 
eralistic design. 

In the course of this struggle the Girondin party had become 
more and more divided, but it was the Buzotins, not the Bris- 
sotins, who led the movement of the provinces against Paris. 
Brissot, however, had been, and still was, too prominent a fig- 
ure to escape popular wrath and oflBcial condemnation. Accu- 
sations were brought against him personally, as well as against 
his wing of the party. These were reiterated at the time of his 
expulsion from the Jacobin Club in October, 1792, and in his 
address "A tous les republicains de France" he defended him- 
self again, referring to his protests in the summer of 1791 
against the suspicion of supporting a federated republic. He 
had convinced Danton, he declared, that he did not hold fed- 
eralist principles, but, in spite of his protests, Robespierre con- 
tinued to accuse him. As for the alleged evidence against him 
that he had praised the Federalist, it fell to the ground because 
that work was not in favor of a confederate government, but 
distinctly against it. 

In regard to the accusation made later, by Anacharsis Cloots, 
that Brissot, apropos of proposed annexations, had said that 
France was already too large to be governed as a unit,^ Brissot 
replied that he had been quite misunderstood, and that the 
only basis for the statement which he was alleged to have made 
was his opposition to Cloots's scheme for a universal republic, 
concerning which he had said that in case France were to be 
extended beyond the limits prescribed for her by nature, the 
ideal was not a universal republic, but a girdle of federated 
republics. Was it not unfair, he asked, to judge him by a single 
remark like this, taken out of its context.'* 

* MoniteuT, January 8, 1793. ^ Cloots, Ni Roland ni Marat. 



THE CONVENTION 347 

In spite of Brissot's attempted repudiation of these charges, 
they continued to be made against him, and when twenty -one 
of the Girondins were finally brought to trial, the indictment 
was against "Brissot and his accomplices." It was charged 
that he had advocated a departmental guard, at any rate, till 
the last, when he argued for an appeal to the primary assem- 
blies in preference; that he had objected to annexation; that 
he led the demand for an appeal to the people during the trial 
of the king; and that he lent the influence of his newspaper to 
the attacks against Paris. In his Pro jet de defense he therefore 
devoted considerable space to a reply to these accusations. It 
was but a reiteration of his former protest on this subject. He 
declared that, far from being a federalist, he had attacked fed- 
eralism even before the existence of a republic, and in support 
of his assertions, pointed to his attitude in 1791. When at that 
time a republic was proposed, and when the cry was raised that 
France was too large for a unified republic, and that a federated 
republic meant danger from internal anarchy and from foreign 
foes, he was one of the first to recognize the danger and to pro- 
test that no one had any intention of so dividing France. In 
answer to the charge that he had favored a departmental 
guard, he laid stress on the fact that, as soon as he realized that 
the project for such a guard was provoking serious discord, 
he promptly opposed it. The accusation of having calumniated 
Paris he repudiated with indignation. 

The Girondins, as a party, were quite as emphatic in their 
defense. That their efforts to raise a departmental guard were 
an evidence of federalism, they flatly denied. They had no 
intention whatever, they declared, of using the proposed de- 
partmental guard to destroy the unity of the Republic; on the 
contrary, they had demanded it for the very purpose of secur- 
ing that unity. ^ It was the same motive, they protested, which 
influenced them to advocate an appeal to the provinces at the 
time of the king's trial, and later an appeal to the primary 
assemblies to elect another Convention, and which finally led 
^ Speech of Buzot, September 25; Moniteur, September 26. 



S48 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

them to raise the provinces in armed insurrection against 
Paris. This defense is borne out by the fact that no department 
raised troops for the defense of its own territory; no depart- 
ment declared itself independent: they were only acting to- 
gether and for the common interest. According to M. Dauban, 
the movement, instead of being federalistic, was but the equiv- 
alent of the departmental movement of 1848, when the na- 
tional guards from all over France came to fight the insurgents 
of Paris. 

The origin, however, of the charge of federalism is clear 
enough. In the first place, many of the Girondins were feder- 
alists in theory; in the second place, their attitude toward the 
provinces gave abundant color to the accusation of hostility 
to Paris. Buzot, for example, in his memoirs, frankly acknowl- 
edged such belief and appealed in support of it to the theories 
of sundry eighteenth-century philosophers and to the example 
of the United States. 

Further, Buzot declared, in the course of an argument with 
Cloots, that since a man's patriotism consists not so much in 
love of the land on which he lives as in the love of the citizens 
with whom he lives, there could be little common enthusiasm 
for the country between men separated by hundreds of leagues. 
Smaller divisions were, therefore, necessary.^ But while re- 
pudiating federal ideas, Buzot used the phraseology of federal- 
ism and in the same breath spoke of the deputies as ambassa- 
dors from the different parts of the Republic. Gorsas, another 
Girondin, in his newspaper, the Courrier des Departements, 
demanded with surprise and indignation why federalism should 
be regarded as a crime, and referred his readers to the Esprit 
of Helvetius.^ And Brissot, while not advocating federalism 
for France, was always holding up the United States as having 
an ideal form of government. 

But to assert that the Girondins believed in federalism is 
one thing; to explain what they meant by it is quite another. 

^ Mimoires de Madame Roland, i, 107-08. 

* Courrier des Departements, October, 1792, quoted by Bire, 350-51. 



THE CONVENTION S49 

It may be said that as the federal system of the United States 
was their inspiration and the model which they would have 
liked to see followed in France, one has only to study that sys- 
tem in order to understand their position. But it is extremely 
doubtful if they themselves understood the federal government 
across the water. To them it was undoubtedly much more like 
a confederation than a federation, and if they had attempted 
to copy it in France, they would probably have developed a 
highly decentralized organization. 

In addition to their theories, there was the further suspicious 
fact that their attitude toward the provinces was, to put it 
mildly, not out of harmony with their theoretical beliefs. That 
attitude may be explained without reference to federalism. It 
was a natural outcome of the situation in the summer of 1792. 
In fact, at that time, when the overthrow of the king was under 
consideration, they went so far as to suggest the advantages 
of federalism and began to sound public opinion on the sub- 
ject, but they did little more than suggest it. While they 
were still hesitating and temporizing, the Jacobins, together 
with the Commune of Paris, carried through the insurrec- 
tion of August 10. The events which followed, though they 
may be explained quite apart from any connection with fed- 
eralism, gave color to the accusation that they were still work- 
ing for that particular form of government. Irritated at what 
they considered too great an extension of the power of Paris, 
the Girondins naturally looked to the provinces, which, as a 
matter of course, were inclined to be jealous of Paris. This led 
to the renewal of the struggle under the Convention; the Giron- 
dins, on the one hand, seizing the opportunity afforded by the 
events of the first weeks of September to accuse the Mountain 
of responsibility for the massacres; and the Mountain, on the 
other, seizing upon the alliance between the Girondins and the 
provinces to accuse the latter of wishing to divide the Republic 
and to establish a federal system of government. Although 
the Girondins stoutly maintained that when once the Republic 
was established they abandoned any federative plans they 



350 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

might have had, it was natural that the Mountain should 
doubt their assertion. Thus, the origin of the charge of feder- 
alism is evident enough, but the alleged proof brought forward 
by the Mountain in support of it is absolutely insufficient. As 
is generally recognized, the Mountain, although they succeeded 
in expelling the Girondins from the Convention and in securing 
their conviction, really failed to prove the case against them. 

What is clear, however, is that despite their abandonment 
of federalism as a form of government, the policy of Brissot 
and the other Girondins was decentralizing in tendency. Wit- 
ness Brissot's attitude in the summer of 1789. "It is time," 
he wrote, "that the Parisians renounce the idea that the prov- 
inces ought to be sacrificed to them. That despotism which 
all the realm used to see in Paris ... is no more. The bond 
which is to unite Paris to the provinces can no more be a bond 
of slavery, but of fraternity." ^ Later, he disapproved of the 
plan of Maluet for the dependence of local authorities on 
the monarch. 2 And again, his proposition for a council com- 
posed of representatives of the departmental guard and for an 
appeal to the provinces at the time of the king's trial and later 
in an effort to renew the Convention, were evidences of a pol- 
icy of decentralization. In short, the Girondins represented as a 
whole the system of strong local government established by the 
constitution of 1791 rather than the centralization which had 
culminated in Louis XVI. But not only was the whole trend 
of French history against them, but France was now at war, 
and in time of war to adopt and follow a policy of decentraliza- 
tion, which would with difficulty have had a permanent suc- 
cess only in time of peace, did not show far-sighted and wise 
statesmanship. It was because of this lack of practical ability 
and of their ill-considered efforts at decentralization at a period 
when centralization was needed, and not because of any attack 
on the unity of the Republic, that they so signally failed. 

^ Patriote Franqais, August 7, 1789. 

^ Ihid., February 23, 1790. This may have been, however, largely objec- 
tion to the power of the king, as such, rather than to centralized government. 



CHAPTER XII 

ARREST, TRIAL, AND DEATH 

The events of the last weeks of May showed the fatal weak- 
ness of the Girondins. The latter, it is true, realized the grow- 
ing strength of the Mountain, but, although they foresaw the 
issue, they were unable to do anything to avert it. As Brissot 
pathetically put it, they discussed much, but they could come 
to no conclusion. 

It was no longer a question primarily of political principles, 
but of personal safety, and the danger was daily becoming 
more imminent. As early as the 19th of May, Brissot wrote to 
a friend that they were suffering torturing anxiety; that people 
were saying that enough cooks and cab drivers had been de- 
capitated; that it was the heads of the deputies which ought 
to come off now; and that such threats had so terrified the 
deputies that half of them were afraid to sleep at home, lest 
they might be arrested during the night. ^ Some of them took 
refuge at the home of Meillan, possibly because it was situated 
in a quarter of the city where there was more Girondin sym- 
pathy.^ Brissot fled there on the 31st of May, and Vergniaud, 
Gensonne, Guadet, and others soon joined him. In momen- 
tary fear of arrest, they dared not go to bed on the night of 
June 1, but passed the night in their chairs, getting what sleep 
they could. The next morning they gathered together as many 
of their friends as they could reach and tried to agree on a plan 
of action. Some were for going to the Assembly; others thought 
that too hazardous and proposed that they draw up a declara- 

^ Letter of Brissot, May 19, 1793. Correspondance, 338. 

^ " Plusieurs des proscrits s'etaient rSfugies chez moi. Je logeais dans un hotel 
taste et presque inhabits d portee de la Convention et dans un quartier oit, les bans 
citoyens conservaient encore de V influence. . . . Petion, Brissot, Guadet, Salles, 
GensonnS, et quelques autres cederent enfin a nos instances et consentirent d'atten- 
dre dans cet asile le risultat de la seance." Meillan, 52. 



352 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

tion of principles; but despite the gravity of the crisis they 
could come to no decision. Instead of doing anything definite, 
they spent the time discussing the relative dignity of suicide 
or death on the scaffold; but even here they could not agree. 
While they were in the midst of this discussion, the brother of 
Rabaut Saint-Etienne rushed in, wildly excited, crying out 
that the Convention was no more and calling on the deputies 
to save themselves. The instinct of self-preservation at once 
asserted itself, and without waiting to decide either on a com- 
mon form of death or a common line of action, the deputies, 
with few exceptions, sought safety in precipitate flight.^ 

The futile efforts and misdirected energies of the Girondins 
in opposing needed centralization may arouse contempt, but 
their sufferings in flight and imprisonment cannot fail to 
awaken sympathy. The politician sinks into the background; 
one sees rather the human being in a crisis which involves his 
personal safety and his very life. This is emphatically true of 
Brissot. He fled with the rest from the home of Meillan, and 
his thoughts turned at once toward Chartres, his native city, 
as a place of refuge, but he was unable to leave Paris at once, 
because of the lack of ready money. ^ Where he hid in Paris is 
not known, but by June 4 he had managed to get away, and 
by the 5th he had reached Versailles. Here, at the home of one 
Beau, he met a friend and admirer named Souque,^ who cour- 
ageously determined to accompany him in his flight.* They 

* Brissot, Memoires, ii, 216. 

2 Lettre de Barbaroux aux Marseillais, cited by A. DuchS,tellier, Hisioire de 
la Revolution en Bretagne, I, 407. Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 734, note. 

' Examination of Souque before the council general of the Department of 
the Allier. Correspondance, 341-46. Souque had known Brissot at the Jaco- 
bin Club. He escaped the guillotine, but was left in prison till the 9th Thermi- 
dor. He afterward served in various affairs under the Directory, and in 1819 
was elected a member of the Corps Legislatif. He was also known as a dra- 
matic author of some repute. See Vatel, Charlotte Corday et les Girondins, ii, 
249, note. 

* According to the examination before the council general of the Depart- 
ment of the Allier, business interests were in part responsible for Souque's 
determination to accompany Brissot, as he had been connected with the army 
in the Department of the Eure-et-Loir. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 353 

accordingly set off together toward Chartres. Here Brissot 
was destined to be bitterly disappointed.^ "I hoped," he wrote 
in his memoirs, "that my reputation and the services which 
I had rendered to liberty would make me welcome. The first 
man I saw was a friend of twenty years' standing : he trembled 
and was embarrassed; he urged me to flee immediately, prom- 
ised to come back to see me again, but did not appear. Those 
whom I met afterward, while they showed more courage, gave 
me the same advice. I could certainly apply to myself that 
passage: '/n patriam venit et sui eum non receperunt.' " ^ 

Saddened by what seemed to him the basest ingratitude, 
he departed from Chartres in despondency, feeling that if his 
own city refused to receive him, there was no refuge left. But 
to wander about aimlessly for any length of time was not pos- 
sible, and learning that some of the deputies had gone toward 
Orleans, he and Souque turned their steps in that direction.' 
Under such circumstances, it is small wonder that the forests 
through which Brissot passed seemed very alluring, and that 
he longed, as in the days of his youth, to return to a life of 
nature. "How I regretted," he wrote in describing his feelings, 
"that I could not bury myself and hide forever from those men 
for whom I had sacrificed all, and who had not hesitated to 
sacrifice me. The more wild, sad, and lonely Nature appeared, 
the more she pleased my soul." 

The state of opinion in Orleans was not reassuring, and find- 
ing that "Maratism" was in the ascendant, he and Souque 
decided speedily that no safety was to be found there. They 
therefore continued their weary journey in the direction of Gien, 
Nevers, and Moulins. To their dismay, they found that when- 
ever they passed through a village, they had to stop, show their 
passports, and answer embarrassing questions. Souque seems 

1 The support which Brissot had received from Chartres came largely from 
the Jacobin Club there, and his expulsion from the Jacobin Club at Paris would 
naturally influence the local Jacobin Club against him. 

^ Brissot, Memoires, n, 216. 

' Examination of Souque before the council-general of the Department of 
the Allier. Correspondunce, 341-46. 



354 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

to have been more astute and to have shown more practical 
sense than Brissot. At all events, he tried to arrange their 
journey so that they might reach Moulins at an early hour and 
thus run less risk of being detained. But Brissot, who was 
overcome with fatigue, insisted on stopping at a little inn a 
couple of leagues from Nevers for a good night's rest. This 
upset Souque's calculations, and, in consequence, they did not 
arrive at Moulins till noon. Instead of the single sleepy guard 
whom Souque counted on hoodwinking, the local authorities 
were numerous and wide awake. ^ Disaster followed for both 
Souque and Brissot. 

According to their custom, Souque went alone to the police 
with their passports. ^ This was a wise precaution, since Bris- 
sot, widely known as he was, might be recognized, and his pass- 
port, which represented him as a Swiss merchant, Ramus by 
name, of Neuchatel, Switzerland, be challenged.^ But fate, 
which had treated him kindly so far, failed him on this occa- 
sion. The suspicion of the police oflBcer whose business it was 
to vise the passports was aroused, and Brissot was obliged to 
present himself in person before him. He was then shown an 
order from the minister of the interior, forbidding the accept- 
ance of any Swiss certificates, except such as were signed by 
Barthelemy, ambassador of France in Switzerland. Brissot's 
objection, that this order could not possibly apply to him, 
since his passport antedated it by two months, was not favor- 
ably received, and the officer continued to press him with 
questions, which he did his best to answer satisfactorily. 
But the officer refused to be satisfied, and would do nothing 
without consulting the mayor, who wished to consult the dis- 
trict, and the district in turn carried the matter to the de- 
partment. Brissot was accordingly called before the depart- 
mental council. He was naturally much disturbed lest he be 

^ Brissot, Mdmoires, ii, 221-22. 
^ See note of M. Perroud, Correspondance, 339. 

' Ramus was the son of a Swiss pastor of Neuchdtel, Switzerland, and was 
in the employ of Beau at whose house Brissot stopped at Versailles. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 355 

recognized, but he put a brave face on it and stoutly maintained 
that he was a Swiss merchant. But to support his assertion he 
soon found was not so easy. Where were his papers .'^ he was 
asked. He had none. Where were his trunks? He was travel- 
ing without any. Who were his correspondents? Without hesi- 
tation he named several important houses, and trying to brazen 
it out, he offered to stay at Moulins till the authorities should 
assure themselves of his identity. Whereupon one obstinate 
member of the council proposed that in the meantime he be 
kept in prison, a proposition to which Brissot vehemently ob- 
jected, and demanded instead that he be allowed to remain 
under guard at the inn. After much discussion, it was finally 
decided that he be placed provisionally in a state of arrest, and 
that the conveyance in which he and Souque had arrived be 
examined. Meanwhile, the prospect of imprisonment brought 
Brissot to his senses. He realized how impossible it would 
be to conceal his identity for any length of time, and, that by 
revealing it, showing himself, as he put it, "invested with the 
sacred character of representative of the nation," he might 
escape actual imprisonment. Accordingly, when he was brought 
before the comite de surete generate,^ he confessed who he was.^ 
In defense of his action, he declared that had he felt that the 
decree against him represented the real desire of the legislators, 
his respect for the law and for the Convention would have pre- 
vented his flight, but his conviction that the decree against the 
deputies had been passed under duress, and that the Conven- 
tion had no force at its command wherewith to prevent the 
massacre of the victims, persuaded him that he was justified 
in fleeing and in taking every possible measure for his safety, 
even to the deceit of traveling under a false passport. In con- 
clusion, he asked that his case be referred to the Convention.' 
When the committee of public safety thus reported the result 

1 M. Perroud, in a footnote, explains that this committee was more properly 
called the comitS de surveillance, and that in its proces-verbal it calls itself the 
comit6 de salut public. Mimoires de Brissot, ii, 222. 

* Proces-verbal du comite de salut public. Correspondance, 346-49. 

' See Correspondance, 346-49. 



356 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

of their examination to the council of the department, the lat- 
ter declared that Brissot was under the safeguard of the law 
and the loyalty of the citizens of Moulins, and that he should 
be treated with the respect due to a representative of the 
nation. It also decreed that Brissot and Souque should be 
kept under guard by the municipality at the inn. 

Souque was also examined. From the stress laid on questions 
as to the motives which actuated Brissot and himself to go to 
this or that department, the examiners were evidently suspi- 
cious that Brissot and Souque were engaged in fomenting a 
conspiracy against the Convention.^ They were unsuccessful, 
however, in forcing from Souque any incriminating admis- 
sions. Neither had the committee of public safety found any 
incriminating papers among the effects of Souque and Brissot 
and nothing worse than two English pistols. ^ 

The suspicious attitude of the administrators apparently 
represented popular opinion, for a mob gathered under the 
windows of the inn and hooted at Souque and Brissot as trai- 
tors. This mob Souque had to brave, in going to appear before 
the departmental council, and on his return he found it still 
waiting for him with insults and threats of the guillotine. Ac- 
cording to Brissot, it was a critical and dangerous situation. 
With great difficulty Souque managed to get through the mob 
and up to the room where Brissot was waiting for him. Pale 
and speechless, he threw himself upon Brissot 's neck, crying 
that their last moment had come. Whereupon the mayor de- 
clared that he could not answer for what might happen, and 
that the only way to appease the mob was for Brissot and 
Souque to be put in prison. At which Brissot promptly ap- 
pealed to the decree of the Convention which placed the depu- 
ties under arrest in their own homes, and declared that he 
would go to prison only under force. The procureur of the 
commune, who was present, sympathized with Brissot and 

' Interrogatoire preti pardevant nous administrateurs composant le conseil 
general du departement de VAllier, juin 10, 1793. Correspondance, 341-46. 
^ Proces-verhal du comite. Correspondance, 346-49. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 357 

harangued the mob so successfully that they were persuaded 
to disperse.^ 

It is to be noted that it was only Souque who was examined 
directly by the council of the department. This body, after 
having learned through their committee of public safety who 
Brissot really was, respected his position as representative of the 
people and confined their investigation to Souque.^ They took 
heed, moreover, to Brissot's request and decreed that the de- 
partment send to the Convention all the papers involved and 
await its instructions. Brissot also sent a letter to the Conven- 
tion, in which he set forth the reasons why he considered him- 
self justified in his flight. He had hesitated at first, as flight 
seemed to him unworthy of a representative of the people; but 
as the Convention was no longer free, it had ceased to repre- 
sent the people. The most potent cause of his flight, however, 
was fear of arrest, and here he was justified on the ground of 
self-preservation. After thus defending himself, he went on 
to demand in the name of justice that he be not condemned 
without being heard in his own defense, and above all that his 
companion, Souque, be released.^ 

The Convention did not look with favor upon Brissot's ap- 
peal. In their estimation, he had added to the crime of con- 
spiracy the guilt of using a false passport and thus forfeited all 
claim to consideration, and should be committed to prison like 

1 Brissot, MSmoires, ii, 223-24. 

^ Extrait du proces-verbal de la session extraordinaire du conseil du dSparte- 
■ment de VAllier. Given in the Correspondance, 350-51. 

* The letter is quoted in full in Vatel, Charlotte Corday et des Girondins, ii, 
248. The Moniteur gives it only in part. Marat published it with the following 
comment: " Tout le monde sait que Brissot, I'ancien espion de police, Vame dam- 
nSe de Lafayette, de Narbonne, de BaiUi, V agent de Louis Capet, le complice de 
Dumouriez, et I 'dme damnSe de la faction des hommes d 'Stat qui ne cessent pas 
de machiner pour le retablissement de la royaute, enfeignant de vouloir la Repub- 
lique, est Vun des 35 meneurs mis en Hat d'arrestation. Tout le monde sait qu'il 
a pris la fuite il y a cinq jours, pour oiler machiner en Suisse, au moyen d'un 
faux passeport dont il s'Stait pourvu d'avance. Tout le monde sait qu'il a itS 
arrets par la municipalitS patriate de Moulins; mais tout le monde ne connoit pas 
la lettre qu'il vient d'Scrire a la Convention, la void mot pour mot, on y verra que 
ce vile intrigant est aussi plat que perfide." L'Ami du Peuple, H juin. 



358 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

any other criminal. One member declared that there did not 
exist a dungeon sufficiently black to shut up such a conspira- 
tor. The matter was finally settled by a decree, passed on the 
recommendation of the Committee of Public Safety, that Bris- 
sot and Souque should be brought to Paris. ^ 

Meanwhile Brissot was becoming a cause of civil dissension 
in the Department of the AUier, and the administrators were 
only too glad to get rid of him.^ Two events, in particular, 
accelerated their zeal. In the first place, the district of Gannat 
drew up an address in behalf of Brissot, which it sent to the 
department. This was read to the departmental council in its 
session of June 17, and provoked a sharp reprimand. The de- 
partment, it was stated, thoroughly disapproved of the address 
because it opposed the decree of the Convention, placing the 
twenty -two members under arrest; because it was opposed 
to the arrest of Brissot; and finally because the example set 
by the district of Gannat was likely to disturb the peace and 
unity of the department.' The department decreed, more- 
over, that the action of Gannat be communicated to the 
Committee of Public Safety. 

That Brissot should be held responsible for stirring up the 
district of Gannat was but natural. If his own account is to be 
accepted, he was an "accessory after the fact," and knew noth- 
ing of the action of the district till after it had been taken. ^ 
But he certainly was indiscreet. The address, it seems, was 
brought to him by an officer of the department, one Des- 
combes.^ Brissot, evidently pleased by this sympathy, was 

^ Aulard, Recueil des actes du comite de salut -public, iw, 578. 

2 The temper of Brissot's captors is well shown by the account of his arrest 
and examination given in a personal letter by one of the members of the tri- 
bunal, Royer by name. While agreeing with the official account as to fact, 
it is distinctly hostile to Brissot. A. N., ad. xvni", vol. 241. 

* Proces-verbal des seances de Vassemhlee administrative du dSpartement d'Al- 
her. SSance du 17 juin, 17 93. See also for the whole subject Louis Biernawski, 
Un departement sous la Revolution frangaise. L' AUier de 1789 d Van II. 

* This defense of Brissot's is given in his Reponse au rapport de Saint-Just, 
Memoir es, n, 263-65. 

^ Brissot gives the name as Lescombes, but it appeared in the proces-verbal 
as Descombes. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 359 

imprudent enough to write an answer, in which he defended his 
position and thanked the district of Gannat for its action.^ He 
was soon made aware of his indiscretion by the mayor of Mou- 
lins, who hastened to warn him that the action of the district 
of Gannat had stirred up great indignation. Whereupon Bris- 
sot offered to make what reparation he could by writing on the 
spot to Descombes, begging him to suppress the letter. This 
last letter, instead of being sent, as Brissot trusted it would be, 
was promptly turned over by the mayor to the committee of 
general security. The result was an examination of Brissot's 
papers.^ Popular opinion against Brissot now expressed itself 
by a demand by the Societe populaire, addressed to the coun- 
cil of the department, that in view of the disturbances to which 
his presence was giving rise, he be sent away as soon as possible. 
The department accordingly decreed that rapid measures be 
taken to "direct Brissot toward Paris."' 

As for the district of Gannat, it soon had reason to regret 
its enthusiasm in Brissot's behalf, for the Convention called 
to its bar the officers of Gannat and ordered that the seat of 
the district administration be transferred from Gannat to 
Saint-Pourgain. This decision naturally provoked consterna- 
tion at Gannat and frantic appeals for pardon. The 25th of 
June the citizens of Gannat sent an address to the Convention, 
protesting that they were guilty of no counter-revolutionary 
design, that their vjllage had been calumniated, and that they 
had no intention of marching against Moulins.^ The 26th of 
June, the procureur-syndic of the district of Gannat appeared 
before the council of the department to explain the action of 
the district.^ The 27th the council general of Gannat appointed 
a special committee to make further explanations.^ The 3d of 
July the administrators appeared before the bar of the Con- 
vention, and by making humble apology and retracting their 

' See Correspondance, 358-60. ^ Reponse, Memoires, ii, 263-65. 

' Proces-verbal des seances de VasserribUe administrative du department de 
I'Allier, June 18, 1793. 

* District du Gannat, Correspondance, June 25, 1793, 

* Proces-verbal, referred to above. ' Gannat, Conseil-giniral, 263-64. 



360 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

action, were able to secure their personal reinstatement and 
the reestablishment of Gannat as the head of the district.^ 

The very next day after the popular society of Moulins, 
stirred by the Gannat incident, had urged Brissot's departure, 
another evidence of sympathy in his behalf came to light, and 
made more desirable still his speedy departure from Moulins. 
This was the arrival in Moulins of a young Spaniard, named 
Marchena, who declared that he had made the journey ex- 
pressly to see Brissot. Being brought before the officers of the 
municipality, he gave a straightforward account of himself — 
an account which agrees very closely with Brissot's subsequent 
explanation of their relations. ^ It seems that Marchena, having 
been banished from Spain on account of his revolutionary 
views, had been obliged to flee from his country. He had set- 
tled at Bayonne, where he had connected himself with the 
Jacobin society. A speech which he had delivered in August, 
1792, against royalty and on the organization of the Republic, 
brought him to Brissot's attention. The latter saw in him a 
person likely to be useful in preparing the revolution in Spain, 
and accordingly invited him to come to Paris and presented 
him to Lebrun. The decline of the Girondin party apparently 
put an end to Marchena's activities in this matter, but not to 
his devotion to Brissot, and he now voluntarily came to Mou- 
lins prepared to share Brissot's imprisonment and misfortunes. 
In addition to his sympathy with Brissot, the municipal au- 
thorities found him guilty of the more tangible charge of trav- 
eling under a false passport. The council general accordingly 
decreed his imprisonment till he could be brought before the 
committee of public safety of the department. 

This arrest, following so closely on the heels of the Gannat 

^ Biernawski, ii, 363-64. The incident was made much of as showing that 
Brissot was a dangerous conspirator. Biilaud-Varennes, in a speech delivered 
the 15th of July, said; "Pendant un rSsidence de quelques jours a Moulins, Bris- 
sot a presque rSussi a y realiser la guerre civile." Discours sur les deputes de la 
Convention, mis en etat d'arrestation, par son dScret du deuxi^me juin prononcS 
dans la seance du quinzieme juillet, 1793, p. 24. 

2 Brissot, Memoires, ii, 226, 265-66; also Extrait des minutes deposees au 
secretariat de la municipalite de Moulins, printed in Correspondance, 361-68. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 361 

affair, now brought matters to a crisis. The department, with- 
out waiting for directions from Paris, passed a decree which 
provided that Brissot should start the next day, the 20th; that 
he should be accompanied by a civil commissioner appointed 
for the purpose, and by two national guards; that he should 
make the journey in a four-seated carriage; that another civil 
commissioner should go ahead in the conveyance in which Bris- 
sot had arrived in Moulins; that Souque and Marchena should 
be sent to Paris accompanied by two national gendarmes, but 
that they should be separated from Brissot by a distance of 
several hours; that the execution of these measures should be 
entrusted to the municipality of Moulins, and that for this 
purpose the necessary funds should be advanced by the de- 
partment.^ These decrees were, however, unnecessary, as the 
municipality, having in the mean time received notice from 
Paris of the decree of the Convention ordering the transfer of 
Brissot, had proceeded to immediate action. 

There were many details to be arranged : what route should 
be followed; how many horses would be needed to start with; 
where, and how, fresh horses could be obtained along the route; 
where conveyances could be found; who should be chosen to 
accompany the prisoners; what the expense would be, etc. 
An interesting complication arose concerning a conveyance. It 
was reported that a certain citizen, Faucompre by name, whose 
father was an emigre, possessed a carriage suitable for the pur- 
pose. The question of ownership thus became important, for, 
if the carriage were the property of an emigre, it could be taken 
for the service of the Republic, otherwise not. The munici- 
pality in perplexity appealed to the department, which de- 
cided that, as the father and son lived together, the carriage 
might be considered as belonging to the father, and so sub- 
ject to confiscation. The department also, on request of the 
commune, advanced three thousand francs for necessary ex- 
penses.^ 

^ AssemhUe administrative du dipartement de VAllier, June 19, 1793. 

* Registre des ddlibirations prises par le conseil general de la commune de 



362 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

All these measures seem to have been taken with great 
haste, for, on the evening of the 19th, the very day on which 
the decree of the Convention reached Moulins, the authori- 
ties started their prisoners. It was a cavalcade of some impor- 
tance, one rider going in advance to provide for the change of 
horses, then three carriages, one each for Brissot, Souque, and 
Marchena, accompanied by civil commissioners and gen- 
darmes.^ The moment of departure was a trying one for Bris- 
sot. It had been announced for seven o'clock in the evening, 
and by three o'clock the square was fiill, while the windows 
and roofs of adjacent buildings were covered with spectators. 
Although no actual violence seems to have been ojffered, there 
were shouts, "To the guillotine." But Brissot appears to have 
been prepared for insults and to have received them with at 
least outward calm. As far as Montargis, he met with evi- 
dences of curiosity rather than of antagonism, but there he had 
a most unpleasant experience. Hostile crowds gathered round 
and drew hideous and suggestive caricatures on the sides of his 
carriage. "Nothing," he declared, "could be more like a dance 
of cannibals around their victim attached to the fatal stake 
than the sight of those monsters announcing to me with a 
jubilant air the approaching guillotine."^ His fears were nat- 
urally aroused as to the reception he might meet at Paris, but 
his arrival there seems to have occasioned no outbreak. 

He reached Paris on the 22nd of June, and on the decree of 
the Committee of Public Safety, he was taken temporarily to 
the mairie, where it was decreed that he should remain pend- 
ing the action of the Convention.^ He seems to have confi- 
dently expected that he would soon be transferred to his own 
home,^ but the next day, in accordance with a decree of 
the Convention placing him under arrest, he was taken to 

Moulins, 19-20 juin, 1793. Also Proces-verbal des sSances de I'assemblee ad- 
ministrative du departement de VAllier, 20 juin, 1793. 

* Registre des deliberations prises par le conseil ginSral de la commune de 
Moulins, juin 19, 1793. 

^ Memoires, n, 228. 

' Recueil des actes du comite de salut public, v, 44. * MSmoires, ii, 228. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 36a 

the Abbaye,* where he remained till the 6th of October, when 
he was transferred to the Conciergerie.^ 

Meanwhile a deputation of his escort presented themselves 
to the Convention. They seemed to feel that Moulins de- 
served some reward for making so notable a capture and 
asked the Convention for an advance of 150,000 francs for the 
provisioning of their city, but beyond the reference of their 
request to a committee they received little encouragement.^ 

The Convention now turned its attention to the expelled 
Girondins, and on July 8, Saint-Just, in the name of the Com- 
mittee of Public Safety, presented a report upon the deputies 
who, by the decree of June 2, had been placed under arrest. 
While assailing the faction as a whole, the arraignment was 
directed against Brissot especially. "There exists," he de- 
clared, "a conspiracy to establish tyranny and the old consti- 
tution. The conspirators did their best to preserve the mon- 
archy in the summer of 1792, even to the extent of proposing 
the Duke of York or the Duke of Orleans as rulers if they could 
not keep Louis XVI himself upon the throne; and when they 
failed, they calumniated Paris and have ever since been try- 
ing to divide the Republic. In this conspiracy, Brissot has 
played the part of a Monk — and has intrigued both in internal 
and in foreign affairs, first to save the king, and then to reestab- 
lish royalty and to divide the Republic. Witness his actions 
and his words : he showed great attachment to the monarchy, 
he even declared, if there exist men who intend to establish a 
republic upon the ruins of the constitution of 1789, the knife 
of the law ought to fall upon them like the partisans of Co- 
blenz. When, in spite of such threats, the king was suspended, 
Brissot demanded that he be well treated. He attacked those 
who defended the 10th of August and brought it about; he made 
a fine protest of indignation against the massacres of Sep- 
tember, but at the time he was glad enough to profit by the 

1 Proces-verbal, June 23, 1793. 
^ Brissot, Memoires, ii, 272; note, by M. Perroud. 

' Registre des delibirations prises par le conseil ginSral de la commune de 
Moulins, 1 juillet, 1793 and Moniteur, June 25, 1793. 



364 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

shedding of blood, and inquired eagerly whether one of his per- 
sonal enemies had been assassinated; he used his influence 
against peace in October, 1792, and, besides, threatened the 
Convention with the arms of England and Spain; and to gain 
influence in America, had his brother-in-law appointed vice- 
consul-general at Philadelphia. At the time of the king's trial 
he endeavored to save him from execution, and then, when it 
was too late to save him personally, he conspired with Dumou- 
riez in favor of royalty; and finally he tried to raise civil war 
against Paris and to get the aid of Dillon in proclaiming the 
son of Louis XVI king and his mother regent. The conspiracy 
was directed from Saint-Cloud, where Madame Brissot re- 
ceived the conspirators in the former royal palace, where they 
planned the destruction of the Republic." ^ 

In his prison cell, Brissot prepared an answer to these charges 
— an answer which was both able and eloquent.^ He now 
learned for the first time, he declared, the nature of the charges 
made against him and his friends; but although they now knew 
of what they were accused, Saint-Just had failed to produce 
the written evidence which he promised. Moreover, many 
of the accusations concerned matters of opinion, and it was 
contrary to law to judge a deputy for his opinions. The general 
charges of royalty and federalism, he asserted, were manifestly 
absurd, as they mutually contradicted each other, and, as for 
the latter, the departmental movement burst forth after and 
not before the 2d of June, and, as shown by the oath taken by 
the rebels against the Convention, was not for the purpose 
of destroying but of preserving the unity and indivisibility of 
the Republic. Having thus dealt with the charges against the 
Girondins as a whole, Brissot then turned to the points in which 

1 Moniteur, July 18, 19, 1793. 

* M. Perroud sees no reason to doubt the genuineness of this defense. One 
internal evidence of great weight in its favor, he points out, is the curious mis- 
takes in proper names in the Montrol edition — mistakes which can most 
reasonably be accounted for on the supposition that the matter was printed 
from a manuscript of Brissot's which the editor had difficulty in deciphering. 
See MSmoires, ii, 232; note by M. Perroud. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 365 

he himself was especially assailed, and took up his own personal 
defense. He had been compared to Monk, but his character 
and that of Monk, he declared, far from offering points of re- 
semblance, presented only antitheses. " Monk was a courtier, 
and I have always hated courts from the bottom of my heart; 
Monk commanded armies, and I am a stranger to the art of 
war; Monk was powerful, and I am powerless; Monk was am- 
bitious, and I have no ambition, not even for glory; Monk 
changed his party, and I have invariably kept to that of the 
Republic; Monk was made a duke as the price of his treason, 
and I should always have the fear of the scaffold before me if 
I should be base and stupid enough to commit treason; for, in 
the eyes of kings, I have committed a crime that they never 
pardon: I have condemned a king to death; I have dared to 
say that a king deserves death as I dared to advance the idea 
that it would be impolitic to make him suffer it." His enemies, 
Brissot continued, asserted that he had defended monarchy; 
let them cite a single passage from his works before as well as 
after 1789, where he had upheld it. As for the special phrase 
cited, in which he called down the knife upon any one daring 
to propose a republic, it was taken from its context, and was, 
as a matter of fact, included in that speech of July 26 which 
was approved by the Assembly, as was evidenced by the fact 
that they ordered it printed. "In short," Brissot declared 
with indignation, "it is with a phrase uttered in 1792 under the 
old constitution that they try to prove that under the Republic 
in 1793, I wanted to reestablish royalty." ^ 

The reason why the Girondins were in favor of suspension 
instead of dethronement, Brissot went on to say, was not be- 
cause they were seeking to preserve royalty, but because sus- 
pension was the way to avoid a regency and to bring about a 
total change in the form as well as in the personnel of govern- 
ment. It was alleged against him, as though it were a crime, 
that he asked after the 10th of August that the king be treated 

1 This does not seem quite accurate, as it was to show that Brissot was 
attached to the monarchy in the summer of 1792 that these words were cited. 



366 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

with humanity; he did not remember making such a request, 
but granted that he did, would cruelty be a republican virtue? 
In any case, he showed his opposition to royalty by his proposi- 
tion for the dismissal of the Swiss troops and by the address 
to foreign powers, which was his own work. He could not 
be accused of calunmiating Paris, for he never attacked the 
disorder and anarchy which there prevailed without carefully 
explaining that he was not attacking Paris as a whole, but 
only the evil forces therein. The Morande incident he emphati- 
cally denied. On the contrary he tried, he asserted, to induce 
Danton to put a stop to the massacres and used all the means 
in his power to have those responsible punished. He never 
heard of the propositions for peace referred to; in fact, no dip- 
lomatic committee existed at the date in question. The war 
was due, in the first place, to the action of the emigres and the 
electors; the appeal to the people was not for the purpose of 
saving the king, but to avoid civil dissension and to take 
from foreign powers all pretext for interference by making 
them see that the judgment of the king was the wish of the 
nation. 

He himself was in no way responsible for the war with Eng- 
land. On the contrary, he did all he could to prevent it. The 
real cause was England's own conduct. That he had any under- 
standing with England or America, he emphatically denied, 
and to adduce the appointment of his brother-in-law to a post 
in Philadelphia as a proof of the latter connection, was a sheer 
absurdity. The charges of complicity with Dumouriez and 
Dillon were likewise without foundation. In the case of Dillon, 
the date of the alleged plot precluded any possibility of guilt 
on his part, as he was already under arrest at Moulins. He had 
fled, moreover, not to conspire, but because he believed that 
the Convention was not free. 

But absurd as these charges were, the height of absurdity 
was reached, Brissot declared, in the accusation that the con- 
spiracy was directed in the salon of Madame Brissot in a once 
royal palace. All that the tale of the royal palace amounted to 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 367 

was that Madame Brissot had for a time rented two rooms in 
the apartment of the concierge of the palace. As for the poht- 
ical salon, Madame Brissot Hved in absolute seclusion, de- 
voted to the education of her children and caring for her house- 
hold, without even the aid of a servant. To penetrate into his 
one refuge from political life and to drag his private and per- 
sonal relations into publicity was nothing short of an outrage. 
If they insisted on a scrutiny of his private life, they would find 
the most democratic simplicity, if not actual poverty — in 
itself an answer to the calumny that he profited by the Revo- 
lution to enrich his family.^ 

The wi'iting of this eloquent defense occupied much of his 
time during the month of July. Counting the forty-five days 
of his imprisonment, referred to above, from the 10th of June, 
he must have finished it about the 8th of August.^ It was writ- 
ten at the Abbaye, where he had been imprisoned since the 23d 
of June.^ Madame Roland was one of the prisoners there at 
the time of Brissot's arrival. The next day she was removed,^ 
she herself thought, on account of the fear of the authorities 
of communication between them, but according to Sophie 
Grandchamp, the friend of Madame Roland, it was because 
Madame Roland occupied the one cell which was considered 
a proper place of confinement for Brissot.^ In spite of the re- 
moval, they managed to establish communication through 
Mentelle,^ Bosc,'' ,and Champagneux,^ and it appears to be in 
part, at least, due to Madame Roland that Brissot was insti- 
gated to write his memoirs.^ This production he turned over 
a few weeks before his condemnation to his friend Mentelle,*" 
who, knowing how keenly Madame Roland would be interested, 
offered to let her see the manuscript. She, however, realized 

^ Riponse au rapport de Saint-J^ist, Memaires, ii, 230-71. 

* MSmoires de Brissot, ii, 271; note by M. Perroud. 

* See p. 363. * Memoires de Madame Roland, ii, 351, and note. 
6 Ihid., II, 485. « See p. 17. ^ See p. 121. 

* The former assistant of Roland in the ministry of the interior. 

' MSmoires de Brissot, i, ix. See also Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 734. 
'" Edition de Montrol, preface, xix, et seq. 



368 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the danger of loss or confiscation, and wrote back to Mentelle 
that unless a copy existed, she was unwilling to run the risk.^ 
During this time, too, he also wrote what he called a "legacy 
to his children." 

While engaged in writing these memoirs and last messages 
to his family, he was also making appeals to the Committee 
of Public Safety and to the Convention. The day after his 
incarceration at the Abbaye, he wrote to the Committee, en- 
closing a letter which he asked to have read to the Convention, 
and begging at the same time to be allowed to see his wife. 
Such permission was granted, he wrote, when he was impris- 
oned in the Bastille under the old regime, and the regime of lib- 
erty surely would not be more severe. On the 24th2 and again 
on the 27th of June, he wrote asking to be given a hearing. 
Marat was not condemned unheard, he argued; would they do 
less for him? He also begged again for permission to see his 
wife, his mother-in-law, and his sister-in-law. And on June 
30 he once more begged the Convention for permission to see 
his sister-in-law on necessary business.^ These demands were 
apparently answered only in part, for, although the Committee 
of Public Safety, on July 3, granted him permission to com- 
municate with his mother-in-law and his sister-in-law, nothing 
was said about his wife.^ Thus separated from those who were 
dearest to him and tortured with crushing anxiety as to their 
future and his, Brissot dragged out the weary weeks of his 
imprisonment. 

According to his enemies, he was still engaged in fomenting 
conspiracy against the Convention — a charge which he ve- 
hemently and indignantly denied.^ "The people ask you for 

^ "Je ne veux paint voir lea cakiers de B. que lorsque vous en auriez un double, 
il y a toujours du danger dans les transports, et il ne faut pas risquer une perte 
irreparable." Lettres de Madame Roland, II, 527. 

* See Bib. nat., fr. nouv. acq. 307. 
^ Correspondance, 369-72. 

* Receuil des actes du comite de salut public, v, 153. The 9th of August, 
Madame Brissot herself was put under surveillance. Notice sur la vie de Brissot, 
in Correspondance, Ixvi. 

* This seems to be apropos of a report, made by Barere to the Convention 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 36^ 

bread," he wrote to Barere the 7th of September, "you have 
promised them my blood. Thus you order my death even 
before I am brought to trial. . . . Ah ! if my blood could bring 
abundance and put an end to all divisions, I would shed it 
myself immediately. In order to excuse that sanguinary phrase, 
you imagine that I am conspiring in my prison, you imagine 
that I have said, * Before my head Jails, heads will fall in the Con- 
vention ! ' . . . Yes, I conspire with my triple locks and my 
triple bars! I conspire alone or with the philosophers of an- 
tiquity who teach me to bear the wrongs which I suffer for the 
cause of liberty, that cause of which I shall always be the 
apostle." ^ 

Meanwhile the Convention was preparing to bring Brissot 
and the other accused Girondins to trial. After several at- 
tempts had been made to hasten the procedure,^ the general 
indictment against them was finally presented, on October 3, 
by Amar. This, the decisive act which brought the Girondins 
before the revolutionary tribunal, consisted of forty-five dis- 
tinct counts. It repeated many of the charges of Saint-Just's 
report, but was longer, more detailed, and more sweeping. It 
presented Brissot as the head and front of the Girondins and 
the most culpable member of that faction. There existed a 
conspiracy, Amar declared, against the liberty and safety of 
the French people, and Brissot was one of its leaders. This 
Brissot, who was an agent of the police and a base intriguer 

the 5th of September, on the danger of a rising in Paris. It was followed by 
a demand that Brissot and several others be brought at once before the revo- 
lutionary tribunal. Moniteur, September 6, 1793. 

^ The letter given is in Vatel, Charlotte Cor day et les Girondins, ii, 250-51; 
also in Correspondance, 376-78. 

^ The 26th of July the Convention decreed that the Committees of General 
Security and Legislation be required to present, with as little delay as possible, 
the act of accusation against Brissot. The 19th of August the public prose- 
cutor asked for the papers and acts of accusation against Brissot. Whereupon 
the Convention sent a request to the Committee of General Security to make 
its report in three days. August 25, the public prosecutor complained that he 
had not yet received the papers, and on October 1 the Committee of Gen- 
eral Security was again asked to report immediately. See the ■prods-verbal 
of the Convention on these different days. 



S70 BRISSOT DE WARVlLLE 

under the old regime, began his career in the Revolution as a 
member of the Comite de Recherches of the Commune of Paris, 
in which he acted as the agent of Lafayette. Even when La- 
fayette, in April, 1791, showed his sympathy for the king and 
made pretense of resigning the command of the Parisian guard, 
Brissot continued to support him and declared in the Patriote 
Frangais that the retirement of Lafayette would be a public 
calamity. Brissot, moreover, was always an enemy of popular 
societies and showed himself at the Jacobins only at times of 
crisis. The first occasion was in the month of April, 1790, when, 
under the pretense of philanthropy, he inaugurated a plan 
which was to end in the ruin of the colonies; the second occa- 
sion was in March, 1791, when, in criminal collusion with La- 
fayette, he prepared the way for the day of the Champ de Mars, 
in order to give Lafayette a chance to assassinate the patriots. 
The third occasion was in January, 1792, when he came to 
preach war with the purpose of hindering the Revolution and 
destroying liberty.^ 

On his election to the Legislative Assembly, Brissot allied 
himself openly with the deputies of the Gironde and tried, to- 
gether with them, to usurp a useful popularity, by defending 
the cause of the people on occasions of slight importance, al- 
though they abandoned it often enough in times of crisis. They 
were the agents of the court in trying to bring about war at a 
time when France was in no way prepared for it. With traitor- 
ous intent they supported Narbonne, lauding him to the skies, 
and getting him sent to the army, contrary to all law, before 
he had rendered his accounts as minister. Brissot and Con- 
dorcet came forward in their newspapers as the defenders of 
Dietrich, who was convicted of complicity with Lafayette and 
of having worked to deliver up Strasbourg. Brissot and the 
mob tried to prevent the 10th of August and treated with 
the king. Brissot gave the king advice pernicious to liberty, 
as is proved by a letter in his hand addressed to Louis XVI, in 
possession of the Comite de Surveillance, in which his signature 
1 Moniteur, October 20, 27, 1793. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 371 

is scratched out. Moreover, he showed not only in his secret 
correspondence, but also in public speech, his attachment to 
monarchy, when he declared, on June 26, that the knife of the 
law ought to fall on those who desired a republic. At the same 
time he was responsible for the newspaper entitled the Repub- 
licain, published in March, 1791 (sic), and for the petition 
which led to the butchery of the Champ de Mars. But in 
July of 1792, when people wanted a republic, he tried to save 
royalty, and after the 10th of August he tried to mitigate the 
king's imprisonment by having him placed at the Luxem- 
bourg. He was one of those who attacked the leaders who had 
brought about the 10th of August; he and other agents of 
the English faction had a part in planning the Belgian cam- 
paign, in which Dumouriez let the Prussians retire. They 
wanted to receive the Duke of Brunswick at Paris; they 
planned to flee with the king and the Legislative Assembly 
beyond the Loire. Brissot appealed to the people to save Louis 
XVI; he then proposed a declaration of war with England 
after having tried to prevent it; he conspired with Dumouriez, 
proposed a national guard around Paris as a base of federalism, 
stirred up rebellion against Paris; when arrested at Moulins 
he was probably on his way to Lyons to foment further rebel- 
lion; and finally, if he were not in actual alliance with Pitt, it 
was curious that he and Pitt were working for precisely the 
same things — the overthrow of the Republic, the destruction 
of Paris, the ruin of the French colonies, and the arming of all 
Europe against France. 

In his cell in the Conciergerie, Brissot thus learned from this 
report what charges were to be made against him when he 
should be brought before the bar for trial. He accordingly be- 
gan at once a Projet de defense devant le tribunal revolutionnaire 
en reponse au rapport d'Amar.^ It was an able and lengthy 

^ Memoir es, ii, 272-306. In the first paragraph he speaks of his rigorous 
captivity of four months. M. Perroud notes: " L'arrestation de Brissot est du 
dixieme juin. C'est done vers le dixieme octobre, a la Conciergerie, oil il avail ^6 
tran^feri le sixieme, quil dut commencer ce projet de defense." Ibid., ii, 272, 
note. 



372 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

defense which he drew up,^ a final and supreme effort to clear 
himself from the charge of treason and to prove that he was a 
sincere patriot, and, above all, a true lover of liberty. 

"France and Europe have resounded for some time," he 
declared, "with the alleged conspiracy of thirty-two deputies 
against the Republic." They accused him of being at the head 
of it. But, he continued, he had long waited with impatience 
for them to give definite details of these crimes. And, in the 
meantime, calumniators were profiting by their silence to stir 
up public opinion against them. Unless, then, they spoke out in 
their defense, there was danger that people think them power- 
less to defend themselves. "I am therefore going to refute," 
he declared, " all the facts alleged against me in the reports of 
Saint-Just and Amar. I shall prove that there is not one of 
them which is not absolutely false. In order to prop up their 
absurd accusation, they have ransacked all my past life; I 
thank my adversaries, for my entire life has been devoted to 
liberty and will bear witness to my love for it." Of this love, 
all his early works bore witness, he maintained. His Theorie 
des lots criminelles, his Bibliotheque philosophique, denounced 
the crimes of kings and ministers; his Correspondance politique 
and his Tableau des sciences et des arts en Angleterre were writ- 
ten to inoculate France with the principles of the English and 
American constitutions; VHistoire philosophique d' Angleterre 
to show to the French people the course which they ought to 
pursue to break their fetters; his Lettres a Joseph II exhorted 
a tyrannized people to reconquer their rights. In short, there 
was not a single one of his works which did not have for its 
object "to avenge humanity, liberty, and reason from the out- 
rages of despotism." His journey to America was undertaken 
in order that he might learn how to bring about a like revolu- 
tion in France, and to find a place of abode for his family in a 
new country, in case it should be necessary to abandon hope of 

^ It was nearly twice as long as his answer to Saint-Just. He naturally re- 
peated some of his arguments, as this defense was not only an answer to Amar, 
but to all the denunciations made against himself. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 373 

such a revolution at home; and on his return to France, he em- 
barked on the dangerous career of a journaUst, in order that he 
might daily combat the prejudices, the abuses of despotism 
and aristocracy.^ 

"I, accused of royalism in 1793!" he continued; "I, who 
offered myself on eleven successive ballots for the place of 
deputy to the Legislative Assembly, to be overwhelmed with 
thousands of libels only because of my known republicanism. 

"I, who wishing to combat every kind of aristocracy, that 
of color as well as that of nobility, published so many works 
in order to raise to the level of the white colonists that valuable 
class of mulattoes who form the bulwark of our colonies and 
who will save them from the hand of our enemies. 

"I, who in 1789 dared to be the first and only one to main- 
tain that the Constituent Assembly had not the right to make 
a constitution without the approval of the people — a truth 
which was recognized only after the establishment of the Re- 
public in 1792. 

"I, who at the time of the flight of the king and when the 
most ardent patriots trembled at the mere name of a republic, 
tried on several occasions, and especially in my speech of July 
10, 1791, to reconcile them to the republican regime and to 
induce them at least to establish an executive council named 
by the people and independent of the king. 

"I, who during the Legislative Assembly, worked, talked, 
published with the one purpose of diminishing the royal pre- 
rogative, of preventing its fatal effects, of unmasking the trea- 
son of the ministers, and, since the king would not maintain 
liberty, of bringing about the Republic by a second revolution." 

After thus defending his general principles, Brissot took up, 
one by one, the specific charges against him. He denied that 
he had ever been a spy or had had any nefarious connections 
with England. He was not married to an English woman, as 
was alleged, and his stay in England in 1783-84 for the pur- 

^ Note that he puts forward his democratic principles as an evidence of 
republicanism. 



S74 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

pose of studying English institutions was a flimsy basis for the 
charge of conspiracy in 1793. As for his alleged complicity 
with Lafayette, what connection, he asked, had his relations 
with him in 1790 with a conspiracy in 1793? He had been de- 
ceived in Lafayette, he admitted, but surely Lafayette's part 
in the American Revolution and Washington's admiration 
for him were good reasons for believing that Lafayette was a 
sincere friend of liberty and republicanism. He himself, how- 
ever, had never sought his favor, ^ his election to the first muni- 
cipality of Paris was not due to Lafayette's protection; more- 
over, as a member of that municipality, he had worked against 
the royalists, had tried to prevent action against the instigators 
of the riots of October 5 and 6, and had opposed the plans of 
Lafayette, and after the 17th of July he had openly denounced 
him. He was not responsible for the petition which led to the 
massacre, and as soon as Lafayette showed his true colors by 
firing on the public, he (Brissot) attacked him in his news- 
paper. That in spite of these attacks, he went about openly 
in the streets of Paris, while the other enemies of Lafayette 
were hiding, was not an evidence, as was alleged, that he had 
a secret understanding with Lafayette, but was, on the con- 
trary, a proof of his own bravery and fearlessness. Moreover, 
since that time, he had never ceased to denounce him. 

Another charge laid at his door was responsibility for the war 
with Austria. But war was a matter of honor, and was inevi- 
table, and if he did wage war, he had the support of the entire 
nation. Moreover, war was declared on April 20, and his last 
speech on the subject was delivered the 9th of January; it was 
plain that other influences must have been at work. He was 
also charged with being allied with the court. But he had had 
no personal relations with the royal family; he had always been 
their enemy; and while they had tried to put off the war, he 
had been for it. 

He was likewise charged with responsibility for the disasters 

* But see page 162 for his efforts to get money out of Lafayette for the cause 
of popular societies. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 375 

in the colonies. Such an accusation must concern itself, he de- 
clared, only with his opinions, for he had never had any part 
in the administration of the colonies, and had never had any 
correspondence with any one there. As for his opinions, they 
were both patriotic and republican. They were not only not the 
cause of the disasters of Santo Domingo, but those disasters 
could be attributed only to violation of the principles which he 
defended; in fact, his opinions could not be criticized without 
condemning with him all those who had sustained the same 
principles and the three national assemblies which had sanc- 
tioned them. The real cause of the civil war was the perfidy 
of the agents of the government, the aristocracy of the whites, 
the vacillation and inconsistency of the Constituent Assembly, 
while the revolt of the blacks was due to the counter-revolu- 
tionists in alliance with the counter-revolutionists of Spain and 
England. His approval of the commissioners, Santhonax and 
Polverel, now under decrees of accusation, was charged against 
him. To be consistent, like accusation would have to be 
brought against all the Jacobins, and, in any case, waiving the 
question of their guilt, he had never had any correspondence 
with them.^ That he had been paid a sou for his opinions by 
Pitt or by any one else, he indignantly denied. 

Another accusation laid upon him was that he was respon- 
sible for the war with England. On the contrary, he had, he 
declared, done all th'at he could to prevent war with England. 
Witness his opposition in July, 1792, to the proposition for a 
Batavian legion which would have alarmed England and Hol- 
land; his efforts as member of the Diplomatic Committee to en- 
gage Delessart to enter into negotiations with the court of St. 
James, his furtherance of the embassy of Chauvelin and Talley- 
rand. The real responsibility for the war with England rested 
on the authors of the decrees of November 19 and December 15 
and of the annexation of Belgium and other conquered coun- 
tries, also on the enemies of the appeal to the people. And for 

^ M. Perroud points out that there exists a letter written by Santhonax to 
Brissot. See Correspondance, 331-34. 



376 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

these measures he was in no way, he declared, responsible; 
he had no part in opening the Scheldt, which was ordered 
by the executive council without informing the Diplomatic 
Committee; he opposed the decree of November 19, protector 
of insurrections, since he strongly urged that it be sent back 
to the Diplomatic Committee to be drawn up in such a fashion 
as not to alarm neutral powers; he repeatedly warned the par- 
tisans of annexation, and especially of the annexation of Bel- 
gium, that they would draw upon France the arms of England; 
in his different expressions of opinion on the trial of the king, 
he gave constant warning that if he were condemned without 
having the judgment ratified by the people, France would be ex- 
posed to a rupture with England. For all these reasons he dis- 
claimed all responsibility. Then, taking up his speech of Janu- 
ary 12, — and here he was on firmer ground than in some of his 
preceding assertions,^ — he reiterated his arguments on that 
occasion against war; and finally coming to the speech after the 
execution of the king, in which he proposed the formal declara- 
tion of war, he pointed out that there he was speaking not per- 
sonally, but in the name of the Committee, and that in any case 
the action of the English government had by that time made 
war inevitable. 

This eloquent plea stops abruptly, and it is evident that he was 
called to trial before he had had time to finish it. The prospect 
of the trial gave further opportunity to Brissot's opponents, 
and while he was thus defending himself, renewed accusations 
continued to pour in against him. On the 29th of September 
a deputation of the French colonies denounced the writings and 
speeches of Brissot as the cause of the disasters of the colonies 
and asked that prompt measures be taken to bring him to jus- 
tice.^ Ruelle, charge d 'affaires in the Netherlands, accused him 
of having removed from the papers of the Diplomatic Com- 
mittee the complaint which he (Ruelle) had made against the 

^ There was some truth in Brissot's assertion, in so far as he stood for less 
precipitation, but his claims here are not in accord with his exuberant rejoic- 
ing at some of these measures. 

2 Proces-verbal de la Convention, September 29, 1793. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 377 

minister Lebrun.^ A letter addressed to the public accuser, 
signed Guisat, suggested that Charles Theveneau Morande, 
being an enemy of Brissot and at the same time au courant 
with the intrigues of the British government, might be able to 
give valuable testimony. Another citizen wrote that a former 
general of the Army of the North had certain information 
to give against Brissot in regard to his correspondence with 
Dumouriez and his intrigues in Holland,'^ Unsigned communi- 
cations entitled "A ajouter a V affaire de Brissot'' and "Notice 
sur Brissot," ^ professed to give proof of his alleged conspiracy 
with England to ruin the colonies. All these are further evi- 
dence of the animosity against him.* 

On the 15th of October he was brought before the revolu- 
tionary tribunal for a preliminary examination. The ques- 
tions put to him involved the accusations already made either 
in the formal decrees or in the recent personal denunciations, 
and his answers were reiterations of his innocence and an em- 
phatic denial of all the charges from first to last. At the be- 
ginning of the examination he was asked to name a lawyer for 
his defense and chose Chaveau Delagarde.^ 

This preliminary examination was followed by the trial which 
began on October 24. As in Amar's accusation, so in the trial, 
Brissot occupied the chief place, and, as the most promi- 
nent of the accused, had a special chair.® Fourteen witnesses 
were called, the testimony of ten of whom concerned Brissot.' 

^ A. N., W 292, dossier 20 It, 2« partie, piece 73, 74. See also Proces-verbal de 
la Convention, July 30, 1793. 

2 A. N., W 292, dossier 201t, 3^ partie, pieces 6 et 10. 

^ A.N., F'', 4443, no. 18. 

^ A. N., AA54, J509, no. 46. Appendix C. 

^ Interrogatoire de Jacques Pierre Brissot, Archives nationales, W 292, dossier 
20i, 5* partie. Printed in the Correspondance, 378-85. "Chaveau Delagarde 
dut au debut de la Revolution avoir des liaisons avec Brissot {voir deux lettres de 
lui au Patriate Frangais des 15 fev. 1790 et 25 sept. 1791) ." Lettres de Madame 
Roland, ii, 532, note. 

^ Aulard, Histoire politique, 404. 

^ The records of the trial are preserved at the National Archives at Paris, 
W 292, dossier 20^, Affaire des Girondins. The account given there is, however, 
very brief. See also the Moniteur of October 27, 1793, Supplement; the Bulle- 
tin du tribunal r6volutionnaire and the Revolutions de Paris. 



378 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The ten were Pache/ Chaumette,^ Destournelles,' Hebert,* 
Chabot,^ Montaut,^ Fabre d'Eglantine,^ Bourdon,^ Desfaix,* 
and Duhem ^° — all of the party of the Mountain. Their 
charges, on the one hand, and Brissot's defense, on the other, 
are for the most part reiterations of the accusations and an- 
swers already made. Indeed, practically every charge which 
had been brought forward was repeated, but the so-called tes- 
timony in support of these charges consisted more of mere 
assertions than of definite proof, and was often either vague 
or trivial. In addition to what had previously been adduced, 

^ Jean Nicolas Pache (bom 1746, died 1823) was made minister of war 
under Girondin influence in 1792, but went over to the side of the Mountain 
and was put out of the ministry. He became mayor of Paris and was one of 
the instigators of the insurrection of May 31. 

'^ Pierre Gaspard Chaumette (bom 1763, died 1794) was closely connected 
with the Commune of Paris, was the author of some of the most revolutionary 
measures and was the friend and supporter of Hebert, with whom he was exe- 
cuted. 

^ Louis Deschamps Destournelles (bom 1746, died 1794) was elected minis- 
ter of public contributions by the Convention in 1793 and was a member of the 
Commune of Paris. 

^ Jacques Rene Hebert (bom 1755, died 1794) was a famous demagogue, 
the editor of the Pere Duchesne, and a member of the insurrectionary Commune 
of Paris of August 10. He was guillotined in 1794. 

* Frangois Chabot (born 1759, died 1794) was a deputy to the Legislative 
and to the Convention, and was one of the most advanced revolutionists. He 
was condemned to death and executed with Danton and Desmoulins in the 
spring of 1794. 

^ Louis de Maribonde Montaut (bom 1754, died 1842) was a deputy to the 
Legislative and to the Convention and was a most bitter enemy of royalty. 
He defended the massacres of September and stirred up prosecutions against 
the royalists and contributed to the fall of the Girondins. 

^ Philippe Frangois Nazaire Fabre d'Eglantine (bom 1755, died 1794) was a 
deputy from Paris to the Convention and a friend and ally of Desmoulins and 
Danton. He had a certain reputation as a poet and man of letters. He was 
condemned to death with the Dantonists. 

^ Leonard Bourdon (bom 1758, died 1815) was a member of the Convention 
and one of the most advanced of the party of the Mountain. 

^ Frangois Desfaix (bom 1755, died 1794) was a famous orator at the Ja- 
cobins, took the initiative in a number of prosecutions, and was executed 
with the Hebertists. 

1° Pierre Joseph Duhem (born 1760, died 1807) was a deputy to the Legis- 
lative and to the Convention. He was a most implacable enemy of printers and 
journalists and was one of the instigators of the insurrection of May 31. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 379 

the testimony and the defense may be summarized as fol- 
lows : As a member of the Comiie des Recherches of the Com- 
mune, Brissot had tried to impede the revolution, and, to this 
end, had protected Bailly and Lafayette; he had tried to form 
a secret club in order to neutralize the influence of the Jaco- 
bins; he was in part responsible for the disasters of the colonies, 
as was evident from the fact that he had given Santhonax a 
secret mission; he had praised and upheld Narbonne, and when 
Delessart, seeing through the plans of Narbonne, helped to 
bring about his dismissal, Brissot attacked Delessart; in his 
attack on the Austrian committee, he was both vacillating and 
equivocal; he had great influence over the Girondin ministry 
and named the agents of the diplomatic service, as was evident 
from Robert's complaint against Brissot for failing to name him 
to the post at Constantinople; under the Legislative Assembly, 
he allied himself with Marat and they together introduced 
measures against the king, and then withdrew them the next 
day, in order to sell themselves more dearly. He did not want 
monarchy overthrown, and therefore he was pleased with the 
action of June 21; and when told by Chabot that it had put 
off liberty by three centuries, retorted that it would produce 
what they had expected, namely, the return of the ministry. 
On the 8th of August, at an assembly in the rue d 'Argenteuil, 
Brissot had rushed in and announced with breathless dismay 
what he called most incendiary proposals at the Jacobins. 
After the 10th of August, he had been much concerned for the 
safety of Capet and had tried to have him kept at the hotel 
de justice. The Committee of Twenty-One, after the 10th of 
August, had rejected the eighty-four stars in the new seal, sig- 
nifying unity, which proved that they had ideas of federalism. 
On the 11th, Brissot, at the home of Petion, had practically 
made threats against the representatives of the Commune. 
He had used his influence to control the elections to the Con- 
vention, and in particular he had written a letter to the elec- 
toral body of Beaugency to induce them to choose Lou vet. 
At the epoch of the massacres, he had calumniated Paris in 



380 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the interest of Pitt, in order to arouse English sentiment 
against France. These massacres he had spoken of in the 
newspaper of Gorsas as "just and terrible," and worse than 
that, he was at Petion's when the assassins came in, their hands 
covered with blood, and when Petion drank with them. He 
had insulted Montaut when, at the king's trial, the latter had 
voted for death and accused Brissot of humanity toward the 
tyrant; he had proposed sending troops against Spain when 
war had not yet broken out with that nation, his real purpose 
being to use them for a sectional war. And, finally, he was 
engaged in the conspiracy against Paris; and as evidence of his 
interest and influence in this conspiracy, it was alleged that he 
had not told what he knew about the revolt in the Vendee and 
that a letter of his (apparently the address to his constituents) 
had had much weight in stirring up feeling at Bordeaux. 

In answer to these charges, Brissot made the following de- 
fense. He denied that as a member of the Comite des Recherches 
he had tried to hinder the Revolution, or that he had protected 
Bailly and Lafayette, and in support of his contention, offered 
to produce a certificate of approval from the municipal govern- 
ment. The secret and suspicious club to which Chabot re- 
ferred was a perfectly innocent meeting, whose nucleus was 
the deputation from the Gironde drawn toward Brissot by 
their common interest in the colonies. As for Santhonax, al- 
though he had spoken well of him, he had never given him any 
secret mission to the colonies. In his attack on the Austrian 
committee, he had perhaps gone too far and had made charges 
which he was unable to substantiate, but that was because 
Chabot himself had withheld certain papers which were 
needed to complete the proof. As to his influence on the min- 
istry, Robert was mistaken in thinking that he (Brissot) had 
any great weight; he did interest himself in behalf of Genet, 
but when he gave advice it was because it was asked for. He 
was not a monarchist; on the contrary, he did all he could to 
discredit the supporters of monarchy, Montmorin and Deles- 
sart; he was opposed to dethronement only so long as public 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 381 

opinion was not ripe for it; the specific instance of the meeting 
in the rue d'Argenteuil he did not remember; his interest in 
the place of abode for the king after the 10th of August was 
only that he might be near the Assembly, and he did not 
threaten the representatives of the Commune. He did, he ad- 
mitted, write a letter to the president of the electoral club 
recommending Louvet, but he did not intend it to be read to 
the Assembly, The reference to a comment in the journal of 
Gorsas on the days of September he did not remember, and 
while he did not deny being at Petion's, he did deny that any 
one came in while he was there with his hands covered with 
blood. He did not remember having insulted Montaut, but 
was quite sure that he (Brissot) had never voted against a de- 
cree in favor of humanity. The troops which he was charged 
with wishing to use against Paris were really intended for use 
either against Spain directly or for a naval attack on Mexico- 
He had not withheld information on the Vendee; even if he 
had information, it was the business of the ministry to an- 
nounce it. His address of May 26 he did indeed sell openly 
at the door of the Convention, but he had not sent it to Bor- 
deaux. That he was a monarchist, a federalist, or a traitor to 
the Revolution or to his country, in the pay of Pitt or of any 
one else, he vehemently and indignantly denied. 

In considering the value of his defense and the charges to 
which it was a reply, it must be remembered in the first place 
that the records of the trial are untrustworthy. The meager 
proces-verbal preserved at the Archives does not give the testi- 
mony, and the details furnished by the Moniteur and the Bulle- 
tin du tribunal revolutionnaire were presented by the enemies of 
the Girondins and in the most hostile spirit. For example, 
in the account in the Moniteur and the Bulletin, the evidence 
of the witnesses is given in full, while the replies of the accused 
are frequently summarized. But even taking the records at 
their face value, many of the charges were manifestly absurd 
or, as was stated above, based on unworthy evidence. Further, 
the witnesses were not only prejudiced and interested persons. 



S82 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

but avowed and special enemies, and several of them had had 
a part in the expulsion of the Girondins — witnesses whose 
testimony in any comi; which made the slightest pretense of 
justice would be heavily discounted. Moreover, no efifort was 
made to secure an impartial jury; on the contrary, it was made 
up by the committees of the Assembly, and was composed of 
the most violent members of the Mountain. Consequently, 
Brissot and the other Girondins were virtually condenmed 
before they were tried. 

It does not appear that Brissot had an opportunity to make 
use of the defense he had prepared. According to the notes of 
Chaveau Delagarde, he was condemned unheard, without a 
chance to make a final defense either personally or through 
his advocate.^ According to Miss Helena Williams, who, how- 
ever, is by no means reliable, he defended himself with such 
eloquence that not only his colleagues, but even the chairmen 
of the hostile committees were almost overcome by it.^ But 
taking the account in its worst possible light, the only rea- 
sonable or important charges from which Brissot did not 
clear himself are his opposition to the 10th of August and 
his passive attitude toward the massacres of September. But 
granting that he did not want the insurrection and that he 
made no objection to the massacres, that does not prove that 
he was an anti-revolutionist. 

^ " Je fus chargS de dSfendre dans cette affaire notamment Vergniaud et Bris- 
sot, et par une singularite qui n'appartient qua elle seule et que personne peut- 
etre n 'a pas encore jusqu 'a present observie, ces infortunSs out ete condamnSs sans 
avoir Ste defendus ni par eux-memes ni par leurs dSfenseurs." Quoted in Vatel, 
Vergniaud, ii, 426. 

2 She may refer to his reply to each witness in turn, while Delagarde seems 
to refer to the absence of a final summing up. "Brissot, comme on sait, se de- 
fendit avec tant d 'eloquence devant le tribunal rSvolutionnaire, que je fus frappie 
de Veffet surprenant que son discours produisit sur son collegue Lasource, comme 
lui accuse, et qui venait passer les soirees dans la chambre de la prison du Luxem- 
bourg, oil nous etions alors tous enfermSs. II m'assura que Vauditoire, compost 
cependant de Jacobins, fut Smu jusqu 'aux larmes, et que le chef du jury rSvolu- 
tionnaire, Antonelle, etait agitS de convulsions nerveuses, qui le secouaient sur 
son siege. J 'en avais presque piti6, me dit Lasource, il vaut bien mieux mourir. 
Williams, Souvenirs de la Revolution Frangaise, 23. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 383 

The jurors, however, thought differently. The trial had 
commenced October 24. By October 29 the Convention be- 
came impatient. It had already decreed that there should be 
no general defense;^ it now passed a decree to the effect that 
when the jurors of the revolutionary tribunal felt that they 
were "sufficiently informed," they might ask to have the trial 
closed.^ This suggestive measure seems to have had the desired 
effect, for on the next day, October 30, the jurors declared 
themselves sufficiently informed, retired to deliberate, and the 
same day returned a verdict of guilty.^ It was a solemn scene 
when the jurors came in with their verdict. If Villate^ is to be 
believed, Camille Desmoulins, who was present, was almost 
overcome. According to Villate he was seated quite near the 
jurors' bench, and when the jury filed in, he rushed forward to 
speak to the foreman, M. Antonelle. Something in Antonelle's 
face stopped him and he exclaimed : " My God ! I am sorry for 
you! This is a horrible day!" And when he heard the declara- 
tion of the jury, he lost all control of himself, crying aloud: "My 
God, my God, it is I who kill them, it is my Brissot devoile." 
As the accused filed in to hear the verdict, every one turned 
toward them. There was absolute silence. When the prosecut- 
ing attorney reached the fatal words, "punishment of death," 
Desmoulins all but fainted, and, although he wanted to get 
away from the terrible scene, was powerless to move. Brissot 
also was nearly overcome, Villate continued; "his arms dropped 
limply at his side, and his head fell forward on his breast. 
Gensonne, pale and trembling, asked to be allowed to speak on 
the application of the law. Boileau, in astonishment, threw 
up his hat, crying, *I am innocent'; and turning passionately 
toward the people, invoked their aid. The accused sprang to 
their feet. 'We are innocent; people, you are deceived,' they 
cry. The people remain motionless. The gendarmes force the 

^ Proces-verbal de la Convention, September 26, 1793. 
2 Moniteur, October 30, 1793. 
8 Ibid., October 27, 1793, Supplement. 

* Villate (or Vilate; bom 1768, died 1795) was a juror of the revolution- 
ary tribunal. He is not altogether reliable. 



884 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

people to sit down. Valaze draws from his breast a dagger 
which he thrusts into his heart; he falls over backward and ex- 
pires. Sillery lets fall his two crutches, his face full of joy, and, 
rubbing his hands, cries out, 'It is the happiest day of my life! ' 
The late hour, the lighted torches, the judges, and the public, 
worn out with the long session, — for it is midnight, — all give 
to that scene a sombre, imposing, terrible character. " ^ 

The statement that the condemned Girondins, in the forlorn 
hope of bringing about a rescue, threw assignats to the crowd 
in the courtroom, rests on good authority, but the incident is 
almost incredible. The proces-verhal says nothing of such an 
incident, nor does Villate, just quoted. On the other hand, it 
is given both in the Bulletin and in the Moniteur.^ 

Of that last night there remain few authentic details. The 
famous last banquet does not rest on contemporary evidence and 
has been shown to be a matter of legend rather than of fact.' 
Rioufife says that they kept up their courage well and spent the 
night in singing.* They were allowed confessors. Brissot, how- 
ever, did not avail himself of the opportunity, though, when 
some of his friends expressed surprise, he hastened to assure 
them that he believed in eternal life in another world. ^ He 

1 Villate, Mysteres de la mire de Dieu divoiles, chap. xiii. 

2 See also Les Revolutions de Paris, no. 213, and an accompanying illustra- 
tion. " Le Moniteur et le Bulletin du tribunal rSvolutionnaire pretendent que les 
Girondins, pour exciter les assistants d se soulever en leurfaveur, leur jeterent des 
assignats, en criant: 'A nous, mes amis,' et que Vauditoire, indigne, ne repondit 
que far les oris de ' Vive la RSpubliquel' Cette assertion est fausse. Vilate, qui 
assistait aux debats, nen parle pas, et le proces-verbal de V audience, conserve auz 
Archives de V Empire, W. 292, dossier 204, est egalement muet sur cei incident, 
quil eUt assurement notS, s'il s'Hait passS." Campardon, Le Tribunal rivolu- 
iionnaire de Paris, i, 158, note. 

3 See Granier de Cassagnac, Histoire des Girondins, et des massacres de Sep- 
tember, I, 47; and Eire, La Legende des Girondins, 416-20. It is, of course, pos- 
sible that they had a last meal together, but that it assumed the character 
which the legend has imputed to it is hardly possible. Lasource and Sillery, 
two of the alleged participants, were not at the Conciergerie at all. 

* Riouffe, Memoires d'un detenu, 65. Riouffe was a writer of some reputa- 
tion. At 6rst carried away by the principles of the Revolution, he turned 
against the Terrorists and was imprisoned. 

^ See the account of the Abbe Lothringer in the Republicain frangais of 6 
frudidor an V (August 23, 1797); also Eire, 420, and Vatel, Vergniaud, ii, 330. 



ARREST, TRIAL AND DEATH 385 

could not help feeling keen anguish at the thought of parting 
from his family and anxiety for their future support, as is evi- 
dent from the pathetic and yet brave letters which he wrote to 
his wife, mother-in-law, brothers, and sisters;^ but at the same 
time he was strengthened by the firm conviction that he was 
dying for his country, and that some time he would be vindi- 
cated. He had already written to his family that death seen 
near at hand and looked at in a philosophical spirit lost all its 
horrors.^ And he seems to have kept up his philosophic spirit 
to the last. On the testimony of a fellow prisoner, "he was 
grave and thoughtful, he had the air of a sage struggling with 
misfortune, and if he showed more concern than the others, it 
was only for his country."' 

By the afternoon of the 30th he realized that the end was 
indeed near, and in anguish of spirit wrote his last farewell to 
his wife. "I see, my dear Felicite," he cried, "that my last 
hour has come. Unless I am greatly mistaken, they are going 
to give the verdict to-day. Perhaps I shall have the misfortune 
of not being able to see you again; yet I would give everything 
to be able to. If this happiness is refused, bear the blow with 
courage. You owe it to our children; watch over them; look 
out for them. Keep some of my notes to show to them some 
day. They will say: 'This is the writing of a father who loved 
us, and better than us loved the public good, for he sacrificed 
himself and has been sacrificed for it. . . .' 

"Adieu, my love^ ones, wipe away your tears. Mine are 
wetting this paper. But our separation will not be eternal. "* 

The next day the condemned were taken in carts to the place 
of execution. As they left the Conciergerie, they joined in sing- 
ing the Marseillaise.^ Even the hostile court admitted that 
they preserved their self-control to the last. The Executive 
Council, well aware of the importance of the occasion and of 

1 Correspondance, 388-93. 

2 Memoires, i, 9. For the position of his family during these terrible days, 
see pp. 403-05, and Lettres de Madame Roland, ii, 683. 

' Riouffe, 60. * Correspondance, 394. * Bulletin, 64. 



386 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the danger of disorder, had taken due precautions.^ Such meas- 
ures were indeed required, for in spite of the bad weather^ a 
larger crowd than had gathered on such occasions for years 
lined the streets and filled the windows all along the line of 
march.* Through this crowd, amid hostile cries of "Vive la 
Republigue," "A has les traitres" the sad procession made its 
way from the Conciergerie to the Place de la Revolution. Here 
Brissot and the other condemned Girondins went bravely to 
their death.* 

1 Recueil des actes du comiU de salut public, Vlii, 119-20. 

2 Revolutions de Paris, no. 213, p. 148. 
' Bulletin. 

* They were buried at the cemetery of the Madeleine, as is attested by the 
undertaker's bill. See Vatel, Vergniaud, n, 337. 



CHAPTER XIII 

brissot's family life 

In one of his essays, Robert Louis Stevenson says that wher- 
ever there is a philosopher, there is a suffering relative in the 
background. This was certainly true of Brissot, and the suffer- 
ing member of his family was his wife. Although she held no 
salon and played no part on the political stage, she was an active 
force behind the scenes, a presence indispensable to Brissot and 
the silent victim of his political misfortunes. A brief study of 
this personal aspect of Brissot's life renders vivid the heavy 
price in poverty, suffering, and sorrow paid by the family of a 
revolutionist, and at the same time it furnishes a picture of one 
of the most interesting women of the Revolution. 

It was in 1778 at Boulogne, where he was engaged in work 
for Swinton, that Brissot first made the acquaintance of the 
young woman who was later to become his wife. In spite of a 
wide circle of friends and the entrSe to the homes of some of the 
best families of the town, including relatives of Sainte-Beuve, 
he was lonely and unhappy. " My heart had been longing for 
some time for a special attachment," he wrote afterward in 
looking back on this period of his life. " It seemed to me that 
I was wandering about in space, and when I would come back 
at night to my solitary abode, I was always discontented with 
my lot. I needed another self and I did not find it."^ While 
in this mood he met the woman who was to become his "other 
self" — Felicite Dupont. She was the daughter of a Madame 
Dupont, the widow of a merchant.^ He seems to have been 
strongly drawn to her from the first, but as she was already 

^ MSirwires, i, 166. 

2 Phillips, an English writer of the time and a friend of Brissot, says that 
the mother of Mademoiselle Dupont kept a lodging-house at Boulogne, fre- 
quented chiefly by English people. Biographical Anecdotes of the Founders of 
the French Republic, n, 6. 



388 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

engaged, he concealed and repressed his emotions and sought 
distraction in a whirl of social life and in passing attachments 
which left him only vain regrets.^ 

This distracting and imsatisfactory life at Boulogne soon 
came to an end. Swinton, Brissot's employer, became inter- 
ested in other literary projects and found him no longer neces- 
sary. He was therefore obliged to throw himself once more 
into the whirlpool of Paris. He found life lonesome, and in his 
solitary walks in the Luxembourg, his thoughts turned back to 
the pleasant hours he had passed with Swinton's family at 
Boulogne, and the idea occurred to him that a marriage with 
Swinton's eldest daughter would be rather attractive. He 
therefore wrote to Swinton, but was promptly rejected as a 
most undesirable parti — a rebuff which injured his pride rather 
than his heart. He had frankly admitted that the girl in ques- 
tion had her faults. Indeed, it is quite evident that the charms 
of the daughter were much less seductive than the possibili- 
ties of a business alliance with her father.^ 

But he soon found consolation in his trials and disappoint- 
ments through the geographer Men telle. This connection, 
among many other things, he owed to Madame Dupont. She 
was a friend of Mentelle and had commended Brissot to him. 
The latter responded with promptness and cordiality. He went 
to call on Brissot soon after Brissot's arrival in Paris, invited 
him to his house and introduced him to his friends. A keen 
memory of his own early struggles made him most sympathetic 
with the young journalist, and Brissot found in him not 
merely a profitable means of extending his acquaintance among 
literary men, but a lifelong friend.^ 

Best of all, at the house of Mentelle, he found Felicite Du- 
pont, who had come up to Paris to finish her education. The 
freedom with which he was received there gave him abundant 
opportunity for pursuing her acquaintance, and as she had 
broken her engagement, there was now no further obstacle to 
his suit. To his great joy she responded to his affection and 
1 Memoires, i, 1C7. ^ Ibid., i, 177-78. ' Ibid., i, 185-86. 



FAMILY LIFE 389 

they soon became engaged. The two years of their engagement 
were the happiest of his hfe. FeUcite shared his intellectual in- 
terests, which at this time were largely along the line of scien- 
tific pursuits. They read and studied and went to Fourcroy's 
lectures on chemistry together, and then spent their evenings 
in going over the lessons of the day. Felicite was especially in- 
terested in medicine and devoted herself to such studies in nat- 
ural philosophy as would prepare her to be a good mother to 
her children.^ At the same time she used her influence to get 
Brissot to study anatomy. The dream of his life, he felt, was 
realized; he had found at the same time a good wife and a good 
comrade. Moreover, she sympathized not only with his intel- 
lectual interests, but with his weaknesses, and when he con- 
fessed to her an old liaison and the existence of a child, she 
forgave the past and even thought of receiving the child into 
their home and bringing it up as their own.^ 

Although he was hardly in a position financially to marry, 
his confident expectations of success in the Lycee de Londres led 
him to take the step; and on September 17, 1782, he and Fe- 
licite were quietly married at Paris. ^ At that time Felicite was 
employed as a kind of governess under the direction of Madame 
Genlis for one of the daughters of the Duke of Chartres.^ As it 
seemed imprudent for Brissot to take his wife over to England 
till he had managed to lay at least the foundation for his Lycee, 
it was decided that^he should go alone and that she should con- 
tinue her work. Moreover, while their financial resources were 
so precarious, it would be well for her not to abandon her means 
of livelihood. It was for this reason, apparently, that the mar- 
riage was kept secret.^ 

The parting was hard, but buoyed up by his never-failing 
hope of success, Brissot started off for London, while Felicite 
went back to her work. Her position was not altogether pleas- 
ant. She was subjected to certain conditions which did not 

^ Memmres, i, 185-86. * Correspondance, 35-39. 

' Archives du departement de la Seine. See also A. N. F^\ 570. 
* Afterward the Duke of Orleans. * Memoires, i, 300. 



S90 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

seem suitable, but when she complained to Madame Genlis the 
matter was speedily adjusted. But in spite of Madame Genlis's 
kindness, or perhaps because of it, she could not gather up 
sufl&cient courage to tell her of her marriage. It therefore fell 
to Brissot to communicate the news. He did not hesitate to 
combine business with personal matters and utilized the oppor- 
tunity, while writing to Madame Genlis of his marriage, to 
send her a copy of one of his works, and a prospectus of the 
Lycee de Londres, and incidentally to solicit for the Lycee her 
influence with Vergennes. Madame de Genlis responded kindly, 
though she was obviously displeased by the marriage, and could 
not help showing her displeasure to Felicite. 

Meanwhile Brissot was clamoring for his wife in London, and 
as she was no longer well nor happy in her work, it seemed best 
from every point of viewforher to give up her position. Although 
Madame de Genlis was displeased at the time, she showed her 
good will toward Felicite and wrote to her on several occasions 
in a most friendly spirit. But with the severance of their pro- 
fessional relations, all close personal connection came to an end. 
In spite of this fact, this early relation was of some lasting im- 
portance, as it was afterward made the basis of the charge that 
Brissot was intimately connected with the House of Orleans.^ 
'0 Thus, after nearly a year of separation since their marriage, 
Felicite went to London in July, 1783, to join her husband and 
to begin her real married life.^ It lasted only ten years, but 
those ten years were destined to be full of hardship and suffer- 
ing. The promise of a life of comradeship forecasted by the 
period of their engagement was not fulfilled, though not through 
the fault of Felicite, but because of Brissot's growing absorp- 
tion, first in his literary and philanthropic schemes, and then in 
the Revolution. As the wife of a penniless man of letters and a 
political leader, she had much to endure both before and dur- 
ing the Revolution, in poverty, privation, and loneliness. 

^ Memoires, ii, 12-14. 

2 See article by M. Perroud, "La Famille de Madame Brissot," in La Revolu- 
tion frangaise for September, 1910. 



FAMILY LIFE 391 

It seems that Brissot was not able even to go to meet her at 
Dover, though whether this was because he could not afford 
the expense or the time does not appear.^ He apparently took 
her at first to the place where he had been living on Brompton 
Road, 2 but on the establishment of his LycSe, he moved his 
personal residence to the house which he had rented for the 
society, 26 Newman Street. But they were scarcely installed 
in their new abode, when troubles began to come thick and 
fast. Desforges, who had put up the money for the Lycee, came 
to stay with the Brissot family and proved to be a most un- 
desirable addition. Violent, quick-tempered, vindictive, and 
avaricious, were some of the epithets applied to him by Brissot, 
while he on his side tried to persuade Brissot that Felicite was 
suspicious, imperious, and entirely lacking in charm, a quality 
much needed in attracting strangers to such an establishment 
as they were trying to found. Brissot was naturally indignant. 
The reason for such an outbiu-st, he declared, was simply that 
Desforges expected and demanded to be taken into the very 
bosom of the family and was piqued to find himself treated 
merely as a business associate.' This was but the beginning of 
difficulties. Permission to send his publication into France was 
temporarily suspended; and he foolishly added to his burdens 
by starting another publication, Le Tableau des Indes. Neither 
the Tableau de VAngleterre nor the Lycee prospered,^ he had 
used up all the funds advanced by Desforges, who refused to 
give him any more; he could not therefore avail himself of a 
favorable opportunity of securing a place of meeting for the 
Lycee, and in order to save what he had already put in, he de- 
termined to start out for France to secure more funds. 

In the midst of all these difficulties, Felicite's first child was 
born, April 25, 1784,^ and when the baby was only a few days 
old and Felicite was still very ill, Brissot was seized for debt 

^ See letter of Brissot to Bentham, July 8, 1783. Bentham Papers, in, Brit- 
ish Museum; additional manuscripts, ff. 324; printed in the Correspondance, 64. 
* See letter addressed to him at that place by his brother. Correspondance, 51. 
3 MSmoires, i, 345. * Ibid., l, 389-92. 

' See Recompense nationale, A. N., F^* 570. 



S92 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

and hurried off to prison.^ Fearing the effect on her if she knew 
the real state of the case, he allowed himself to be taken away 
without letting her know what had happened, leaving strict 
injunctions with his sister-in-law to make excuses for his ab- 
sence. After a short imprisonment he was able to satisfy his 
creditors temporarily, and to get back to his family, but the 
growing embarrassment of his finances made him feel that a 
journey to France in quest of funds was imperative. This sep- 
aration caused Felicite keen suffering. In his desire to spare 
her Brissot tried to conceal his most crushing anxieties, and 
only succeeded in hurting Felicite, who, probably not realizing 
their desperate financial condition, felt that for her husband 
to go off on business, leaving her unprotected and ill, showed a 
most woeful lack of sympathy and tenderness.'^ According to 
Brissot's own admission, she certainly needed protection, for 
Desforges, who remained behind, took occasion to harass and 
annoy her. Physical weakness, combined with torturing mental 
anxieties, soon reduced her to such a state that she was 
scarcely able to care for the little Felix. But this was not all. 
Brissot had not been long in Paris when he was arrested and 
thrown into the Bastille. Torn with anxiety as to what was 
befalling his wife at home, and fearing that the sudden news of 
his calamity might be fatal to her and their little son, he almost 
reached the point of desperation.^ It was in this crisis that his 
mother-in-law came to the rescue; ^ and without waiting for the 
ordinary boat, ventured to cross the Channel in a little skiff 
with only a single sailor, in order to get to her daughter before 
she should receive the news by post. In spite of all the precau- 
tions taken by Madame Dupont in breaking the news to her 
daughter, Madame Brissot was for the time being completely 
crushed by it.^ She rallied speedily, however, and set to work 
in her husband's behalf. She came over to Paris, and "to her 
active measures," as Brissot says in his memoirs, "as much as 
to his own innocence," he owed his release.^ 

1 MSmoires, i, 392. '^ Ibid., i, 395. ' Ibid., n, 5-7. 

* See p. 44. " Memoires, ii, 6-7. * Ibid., u, 14-23. 



FAMILY LIFE 393 

In ordinary times, as well as at epochs of crisis, Madame 
Brissot was a true helpmate to her husband, not only in the 
practical affairs of life, but also in his literary undertakings. 
As is evident from her studies during the period of her engage- 
ment, she was by no means ignorant or petty in her interests. 
She had a fair education, which included some knowledge of 
English. She even engaged in translation, and the year before 
her marriage, published a translation into French of a work by 
Robert Dodsley, entitled Manuel de tous les ages, oil ^conomie 
de la vie humaine. The original of this work purported to be an 
ancient Indian manuscript found among the papers of the Grand 
Lama, and was somewhat after the style of the Book of Prov- 
erbs. The following year she got out a translation of another 
work, called Nouveau precis de Vhistoire d'Angleterre depuis les 
commencements de cette monarchie jusqu'au 1783. This was a 
tiny volume, a kind of compendium of history designed espe- 
cially for children, containing much geographical information 
and arranged by reigns. After her marriage she assisted her 
husband in the translation of a history of England, which 
appeared under the title of Lettres philosophiques et politiques 
sur I 'histoire de I 'Angleterre depuis son origine jusqu 'a nos jours, 
traduites de V anglais} 

Now, however, she had no time or strength for anything but 
her family and her domestic duties. Besides Felix, two other 
children were born^ Edme Augustine Sylvain, March 13, 1786,^ 
and Jacques Jerome Anacharsis, March 31, 1791.^ With three 
children to care for, and very little money to do it on, life was 
hard indeed for Madame Brissot. Her husband's enterprises 
absorbed instead of producing money, and, from the beginning 
of the Revolution, politics completely engrossed his attention. 

1 A second edition was published in London in 1790, in which Brissot appears 
as the translator. In the preface he does not mention his wife's help, but the 
catalogue of the Bibliotheque Nationale cites it as her work. 

2 Ville de Paris, Paroisse de la Madeleine, ville I 'Eveque. Extrait du registre 
des actes de naissance de Van 1786. Bib. Nat., Papiers de Roland, vol. in, fr. 
nouv. acq. 9534, f. 322. 

8 Bib. Nat, Papiers de Roland, fr. nouv. acq. 9534, f. 392, and A. N., F^* 570. 



394 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

They grew more and more apart, and the difficult task of mak- 
ing both ends meet fell upon her shoulders. In her humble 
apartment in the rue de Gretry, she struggled on, doing much 
of the housework herself, helping to entertain her husband's 
friends, and going without real necessities. To add to her trou- 
bles, their house became a kind of entrepot for persons about 
to emigrate to the New World, ^ and they were not always 
the most agreeable guests. Apropos of one of these guests, a 
certain Marquis de Wahody,^ who was always making up his 
mind to go to America and yet never starting, she wrote: "Such 
people may be classed with those philosophers who, I believe, 
are disciples of whomsoever can help them, with no idea that 
there are any limits, who are always pursuing chimeras, seeking 
happiness and never finding it, looking for repose in indolence, 
always on the watch for a chance to play a leading part. Such 
is our Pythagorean, always proclaiming that he is ready to 
give up comforts, yet always making himself comfortable; never 
wishing to bother anyone, yet often asking for things which are 
not in the house, milk, for instance, and expressing astonish- 
ment that you cannot procure it in Paris whenever you happen 
to want it. " ^ 

As a refuge from all this weariness and as a means of getting 
her husband out of the turmoil and dangers of political life, 
Madame Brissot often thought of emigration to America. The 
19th of January, 1790, she wrote to her brother that she was 
preparing to join him in America, and asked him for a list of 
things which she ought to bring with her from Europe. "I re- 
joice," she added, "that the Revolution is over, but every day 
I have reason for distress because of anxiety for my husband." * 

But unfortunately for Madame Brissot, the Revolution was 
not over, and as Brissot became more and more absorbed in it, 
life grew still harder for her. Her health became so fragile that 
she could not care for the three children alone, and she was 

^ Correspondance, 242-45. 

* Valady is probably intended. See Correspondance, 244; note of M. Per- 
roud. 

* Correspondance, 242-45. * Ibid., 248. 



FAMILY LIFE 395 

often worn out with fatigue and worry. ^ "Up to this moment," 
she wrote to her brother in America, "I have had to exercise 
such economy that I fear my health will be permanently af- 
fected by it, I feel the necessity of living differently, of having 
good service, of being well housed, of getting good air, especially 
of having country air in the summer. This last has become in- 
dispensable, and even this enjoyment costs money. ... I do 
not yet know where to go in the country this summer. While 
waiting, I go every day to M. Petion's, the mayor of Paris, who 
has a charming garden out on the boulevard near us." 

The disposition of her children and the means of providing 
them with a proper education was another source of anxiety. 
She was evidently sorely troubled by the traits of character 
which they showed. "Felix," she confessed sadly to her sister, 
"is not any too obedient, very lazy, and does not know much. 
... They are children about whom there is nothing extraor- 
dinary, except their very bad disposition, yet I hope they are 
going to be sensible and good." Their inexplicable disposition, 
she admitted with humiliation, might be due in part to the 
fact that she had done too much for them. But if she were 
in part responsible, her husband, she declared, was also to 
blame. He was so wrapped up in political affairs that he paid 
no heed to the education of the children, and did not assist her 
at all in bringing them up. He could not or would not give any 
time to teaching, and private tutors were expensive. The result 
was both sad neglect for the children and her own growing 
alienation from her husband, a sad realization, as she put it, of 
a closer attachment to her children than to him.^ 

But though shut away by her family cares from much con- 
tact with people, Madame Brissot was a keen judge of charac- 
ter. She estimated Desforges at his true worth, much to his 
discomfort,^ saw through the pretensions to virtue and self- 
sacrifice of the Marquis de Valady,^ and weighed with dis- 
crimination the value of the would-be emigrants who stopped 

1 Correspondance, 283-84. * Ibid., 328. 

^ Memoires, i, 345. Also see p. 391. * See p. 394. 



S90 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

at her home on their way to the New World. ^ To Brissot, en- 
thusiasm for emigration seems to have been a sufficient pass- 
port, but to Madame Brissot's more discerning mind mere 
enthusiasm did not seem sufficient guarantee of a good pioneer. 
As an instance of her shrewd judgment, note a letter to her 
brother in America in which she sets forth the character of 
certain newcomers he is likely to receive. The Messrs. Vallots 
had just bought some land of the Scioto Land Company, she 
writes, and her brother would better be informed of what 
manner of men they were. One was a jeweler out of work; the 
other had been employed by the Patrioie Frangais, but he could 
not get on with Madame Dupont,^ was brusque, possessed of 
no great intelligence, and liked to take it easy. Since these 
brothers had no way of establishing themselves in France, it 
had occurred to another brother of theirs and to Brissot that 
it would be a good thing to send them to America. The older 
was rather narrow-minded, and not at all good-looking, but 
he was not likely to do any harm, except through stupidity. 
The younger was better-looking, but very egotistical, and more- 
over, likely to disagree with his brother. 

Having thus described the character of these prospective 
emigrants, Madame Brissot went on to give her brother some 
shrewd practical advice. In case the younger brother did fall 
into difficulties, the elder brother, she argued, would be very 
likely to attempt to get rid of him by proffering his services to 
Monsieur Dupont. Let the latter by no means accept. The 
case of the young Mentelle was different, she continued. He 
had disappeared from home, and as nothing had been heard 
from him in three months, it was not improbable that he might 
turn up in America, and if so, she counseled her brother to re- 
ceive him. Although the youth in question had not showed him- 
self particularly industrious, she felt that his faults were those 
which kindly counsel and good surroundings might remedy.^ 

^ Correspondance, 242-45. 

^ Brissot's mother-in-law, who had charge of the oflBce. See p. 123. 

* CoTTesyondance, 2ii-i5. 



FAMILY LIFE 397 

Such was the discerning character of Madame Brissot's ad- 
vice. It bears out Madame Roland's statement that she had 
much tact and judgment.^ That Madame Brissot always 
looked at matters with sound practical sense is evident from 
this correspondence with her brother and sister in America. 
When, for instance, her brother showed a growing attachment 
for some one who seemed to her unsuitable as his wife, she 
gave her sister shrewd advice how to check the matter; and 
when her sister Nancy's marriage was under consideration, she 
did not forget the practical problem involved, and reminded 
her that if her marriage took her away from her brother, there 
would be an added difficulty for both of them in the way of 
domestic service. ^ 

On this occasion of her sister's proposed marriage, Madame 
Brissot offered her advice which showed an understanding sym- 
pathy and at the same time revealed a wisdom which seems to 
have been born not only of knowledge of the world, but also of 
sad experience on her own part. Nancy had evidently written 
telling her of her growing affection for a certain man and of her 
determination to put him to a year's proof. Madame Brissot 
replies that while she commends her sister's resolve to remain 
indifferent, she cannot help but doubt her firmness. In fact, 
she suspects that she is already too much taken with the 
stranger's good qualities to listen to any counsel. Yet she needs 
to remember that man is fickle; that if she looks for unaltering 
happiness, she is sure to be disillusioned; her husband will have 
his own interests in which she will not share, and she will un- 
doubtedly feel herseK neglected. Above all, there will surely 
be discord and unhappiness if the husband neglects his children, 
or if husband and wife are not in harmony on the education 
of the children. "May my example," Madame Brissot wrote 
in sadness and weariness, "put you on your guard against the 
rocks which you are surely going to encoimter." ^ 

^ Correspondance, pp. 268-69. Also MSmoires de Madame Roland, i, 198. 
Madame Roland speaks of her with infinite esteem and respect. 
2 Ibid., 326-28. » Ibid., 329. 



398 y BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

In her shrewd judgment of character in general she clearly 
discerned the weakness of her husband. In a single word, 
which at the same time betrayed her own suffering, she 
summed it up. "I confess," she wrote, "that I have not 
the strength to consent to sacrifice my husband for — I 
will not say my country — but for a race of men who will be 
stronger than he. " ^ That Madame Brissot herself was stronger 
than her husband in many ways, one cannot but suspect. In 
sane and penetrating judgment she certainly showed herself 
his superior. Brissot's fatal optimism was constantly leading 
him into diflBiculty, while Madame Brissot's ability to realize 
that there was a possibility of failure as well as of success gave 
her better balance and made her a safer guide. Brissot seems 
to have had some appreciation of this. "Oh, my Felicite," he 
wrote, "your whole soul is as pure, as strong as that of those 
celebrated women like Cornelia and Portia, who were well edu- 
cated and on an equality with their husbands. Like them, you 
know how to scorn the grandeur, the pleasures, the fatal 
vanities of the world; like them, you know how to place your 
happiness in that of your husband; like them, you know how 
to inspire him to virtue by your example; with him you seek 
the truth; sometimes your eye, more fortunate than his, dis- 
covers it; it is often from you that he draws that noble courage 
which characterizes his writings; your severe criticism purifies 
them and makes them more useful. "^ 

His wife's family also was devoted to Brissot. From the 
time of his marriage he seems to have been the center of their 
interest, and with his fortunes the entire family prospered or 
suffered. He used his influence in their behalf, and they in turn 
aided and encouraged him. With his brother-in-law, Frangois 
Dupont, he was on terms of special intimacy. The residence 
of the latter at Boulogne put him in a position where he could 
be very useful to Brissot in his enterprise in connection with 
the Lycee. From a lively correspondence carried on between 
them at the epoch of Brissot's London residence, it would 
^ Correspondance, 248. ^ De la Verite, 241. 



FAMILY LIFE 399 

appear that Brissot looked upon Dupont for aid in getting his 
publications conveyed into France, and also in securing infor- 
mation as to the condition of commerce in various parts of 
Europe. And on the other hand, Brissot helped Dupont by- 
looking after the payment of his obligations and by furthering 
his ambition towards a place in the diplomatic service.^ They 
evidently regarded America as affording a good opening. In 
May, 1783, Dupont wrote to Brissot: "I told him [Swinton] 
that I had put off my journey to America till next year, and 
that I ought not to set out without having the position of con- 
sid or secretary interpreter of the embassy; that it is not too 
soon to set about it now, and that he might perhaps aid me 
through Monsieur de Beaumarchais. I will write to Monsieur 
to get him to present a memoir in my behalf to Monsieur de 
Vergennes. ... If you present one for me, do not forget to 
mention the languages. "^ Meanwhile, Dupont having become 
engaged in business which took him to Germany and eastern 
Europe, an American consulship began to look less attractive 
and the possibility of a position in the Levant suggested itself 
instead.^ Such plans came to nothing, and by the beginning of 
1789 he was established in America near Philadelphia, not as 
consul but as an American farmer.^ Brissot gave him letters of 
introduction to his personal and business friends, who received 
him with much cordiality, gave him helpful advice, and invited 
him to their homes. ^ But it was three years before Brissot 
could do anything for him in the way of political preferment. 
Finally, after the 10th of August, 1792, he succeeded in having 
him made vice-consul of France at Philadelphia. 

For making this appointment Brissot seems to have been 
much criticized. It was an evidence of nepotism, his opponents 
declared; the position was very important and gave oppor- 
tunity for working much good or ill to France, and it showed 

1 Correspondance, 45, 50-53. * jiyid^^ 53^ s jfyij^^ 87-90. 

* Lettres de Madame Roland, 11, 217, note. 

^ Letters were sent to him in care of Brissot's friend, Miers Fisher. See the 
Craigie Papers in the collections of the American Antiquarian Society and 
the Scioto Papers in the collections of the American Historical Society. 



400 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

that he was in close connection with the government of the 
United States.^ In meeting these criticisms, Brissot called at- 
tention to the insignificance of the position and the impossibil- 
ity of his deriving from it any influence upon American affairs; 
and while admitting that he did secure the appointment for 
his brother-in-law, he declared that this was the one and only 
case where he used his position to seek advancement for any 
member of his family. Moreover, no one need charge him, even 
in this single instance, with giving an appointment regardless 
of merit, for Dupont was eminently suited for the position. His 
brother-in-law, he declared, was a republican in principle; in- 
deed his chief motive for emigrating to the United States was 
his hatred of the monarchical form of government; moreover, 
he had a wide commercial experience and an extended ac- 
quaintance, spoke several languages, including English, and 
what was of great importance, he possessed public esteem and 
confidence.^ 

Besides a brother-in-law, Brissot's marriage gave him three 
sisters-in-law to whom he was deeply attached.^ Of the eldest, 
Marie Therese, little seems to be known; the second, Julie 
Henriette, was with Brissot and his wife in London in 1783 
for a time. Later she assisted Brissot in the office of the Patriote 
Frangais. Of the third sister, Marie Anne, commonly called 
Nancy, Brissot seems to have been especially fond. He evi- 
dently saw a good deal of her in her girlhood, during the period 
of his engagement with Felicite, and while conversing on the 
sciences with the latter, delighted in trying to influence and 
develop her young sister. "Already," he wrote later in speak- 
ing of this period of her youth, "she showed that strength of 
character which she has since developed." After his marriage 

1 In a note to Brissot's M&moires, n, 257, M. Perroud quotes from Des- 
moulins's Histoire des Brissotins to show how the facts were twisted. "Com- 
ment ne serions-nous pas q^ames .*"' asked Desmoulins, — perhaps with the 
irony of intentional exaggeration, — *' comment nous viendrait-il des grains 
d'AmSrique ? qui est-ce qui est consul-gineral de France ? C'est le beau-Jrere de 
Brissot." 

2 Memoir es, ii, 256-57. ^ m^^^ ^^ 301. 



FAMILY LIFE 401 

she went over to London to live with her sister Felicite and 
Brissot,^ and then later went to join her brother Frangois in 
America. She was evidently very attractive, and the question 
of her marriage was a source of much anxiety to her family at 
home. In the eyes of her family no one seemed quite good 
enough for her,^ and her brother was much relieved when what 
he feared was a possible engagement came to nothing. Later 
she married a M. Aublay and went to London to live. 

But if Brissot was attached to his brother-in-law and to his 
sisters-in-law, it was with his mother-in-law with whom the 
bond was closest, and on whom he constantly relied. She 
seems to have been a woman of energy and ability, to whom all 
her children turned for advice and help in all the affairs of life, 
both business as well as personal. It was to her, in the first 
place, that he owed the introduction to Mentelle, which in 
turn meant the entree to the best literary and scientific circles 
of Paris and the opportunity for a closer acquaintance with 
Felicite. It was she who, at the time of his marriage, advanced 
the ready money necessary for establishing his Lycee, took him 
back to Boulogne with her and started him on his English ven- 
tures with encouragement and sound advice. It was she again 
who received his business partner, Desforges, on his way 
through Boulogne, and when the enterprise failed, helped Bris- 
sot out of dire straits by a substantial present. It was she who, 
on the news of Brissot's imprisonment in the Bastille, risked 
great danger in crossing the Channel in order that she might 
break the news to her daughter.* When the Patriote Frangais 
was founded, it was she who took charge of the office.* It was 
her advice which was looked to in difficulty, and when Felicite 
was disturbed and perplexed by Brissot's neglect of their chil- 
dren and at the division which had developed between herself 
and her husband on the subject, it was she to whom the wife 
turned for help, sure that she would understand the situation 
and would be able to heal the breach and bring Brissot to a 

^ See article by M. Perroud referred to above. ^ Correspondance, 307-08. 
■' 8 M6moires, i, 300-01, 343, 393; ii, 56. * Correspondance, 242. 



402 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

more reasonable attitude of mind.^ And finally, during Bris- 
sot's imprisonment, it was she to whom he wrote his last 
letters and who took care of the family after his death. ^ 

It was only when death was imminent that, at last, Brissot 
fully realized — what he had only had glimmerings of before — 
that he had neglected his family, and in the last few weeks of 
his life, he poured out his soul in what he called " Un Legs a mes 
enfants." After setting forth the object and aims which had 
actuated his own life and begging his children to profit by his 
mistakes, he gave utterance to a last cry of vain regret — he 
could not quite bring himself to say for his political career, but 
for the trouble and grief it had brought to his family, whom, 
though he had neglected, he loved. "It is painful, indeed," 
he wrote, "for a man of tender feelings, for a good husband, a 
good father, to separate himself from those he loves, and, I 
confess it, my children, this is the thought which has often 
overcome me, which had made me shed bm-ning tears. To 
leave you so soon ! You whom I have scarcely seen, you whom 
my occupations have prevented my taking care of, bringing up 
myself! To leave you at the moment when, breaking my po- 
litical bonds, I was going to devote myself to your education, 
and to deserve your tenderness by showing myself your father! 
Above all, to leave my wife, who, since our marriage, has 
known, in her alliance with me, only the sorrows of persecution 
or the privations of solitude. ... To leave her at the moment 
when I was planning to adopt a line of conduct which would 
secure for us a sweet domestic life! Yes, these thoughts are 
heartrending. . . . But calling to my aid the counsels of phi- 
losophy, I console myself by the thought that my children will 
find in their mother a teacher capable of guiding them in the 
paths of austerity, in good character; that my Felicite will find 

* Correspondance, 284. Madame Dupont, like Felicity, seems to have been 
well aware of Brissot's weak points. Just as he was starting for America she 
wrote him: "Tenez votre jugement en suspens, jnon cher, tant que vous ayez vu 
et entendu j>ar vous-meme. Qui vous connaitra ce faible en abusera et vous 
rendra souvent injuste." — Correspondance, 191. 

* Article by M. Perroud referred to above. 



FAMILY LIFE 403 

in her own soul, nourished from her youth in the principles of 
reason, strength sufficient to support this frightful blow; that 
all her family, that her generous mother, that her loving sisters 
and her worthy brother will form but one family, one soul, 
where will be graven the image of a man whose most ardent 
desire was to make them happy." Then, with a note of hope, 
he adds, "I still believe that all public spirit is not lost, that 
gratitude dwells in some hearts and that generous friendship 
will pay a public debt, will come to the rescue of a family whose 
interests I have perpetually sacrificed to the public good." ^ 

As has been said, the family at the moment of Brissot's 
death was under the care of his mother-in-law. The situation 
was harrowing, for it was not only the imprisonment and exe- 
cution of her son-in-law which she had to endure, but also 
heartrending anxiety for her daughter, Madame Brissot, who 
had been imprisoned. She seems to have borne the burden 
manfully; at all events, she appears to have been able to keep 
from Brissot the news of Madame Brissot's whereabouts, so 
that he was able to die in ignorance of the fate impending over 
his wife.^ 

After the arrest of her husband, Madame Brissot had been 
threatened by angry crowds which gathered about her abode 
at Saint-Cloud and had been obliged to seek other refuge for 
herself and her children, but she was soon discovered and 
placed under arrest by the committee of general security of the 
municipality of Saint-Cloud.^ Her case was then taken up by 
the National Committee of General Security, who put her under 
arrest at the Hotel de Necker, rue de Richelieu, under the care 
of the citizen Courtois, discharged the commissioners from 
Saint-Cloud and decreed that, since her journeys and absences 
made her an object of suspicion, she be brought before the 
Committee for examination.^ Her examination took place on 

' Un Legs d, mes enfants, MSmvires, i, 10-11. 

^ See article by M. Perroud referred to above. ' A. N., 4443, no. 18. 
* Exit ait du registre des arretes generaux du comite de sHretS genSrale. A. N., 
AF" 286. Tuetey, vin, 32, 65-66. 



404 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

August 11, when she was closely questioned as to Brissot's 
political relations and her own connection with them.^ She was 
asked why she had left Paris to retire to Saint-Cloud? who were 
the persons whom she was accustomed to see at Saint-Cloud? 
did she know that the concierge at whose lodging she lived was 
a relative of Gensonne? had she not received proscribed depu- 
ties? what had become of her husband's books and papers? 
when had she last visited England? where had she gone on her 
last absence from Paris? how much money had she sent over 
to England? where had she invested it? what correspondence 
did Brissot maintain with Englishmen or other foreigners? 
what was the nature of the correspondence which Brissot had 
with Roland and with Madame Roland? what was the nature 
of the correspondence of Brissot with Petion and the other 
proscribed deputies? had she ever seen any agent of England, 
or of any other enemy, come to speak with Brissot? did she not 
know that Brissot was on intimate terms with Dumouriez? In 
answer to these searching inquiries, Madame Brissot replied 
that she had gone to Saint-Cloud because it was her custom to 
spend a part of every year in the country on account of her 
health; that she did not know that the concierge was related 
to Gensonne; that her last journey was to Chartres and that 
she fled there to escape the hostile invectives which she heard 
under her windows after her husband's arrest; that it was nine 
years since she had been in England; that she had never sent 
any funds there or invested any anywhere else. Of her hus- 
band's political relations or of his correspondence she knew 
nothing whatever; she had never heard of any alliance with 
Dumouriez; Guadet was the only one of the proscribed depu- 
ties whom she had seen, and she certainly had never received 
any of them at her house. 

This general denial was apparently not satisfactory to the 

Committee, for she was still kept under surveillance. However, 

either because the Committee became less rigorous, or on 

account of the kindness of heart of the officer to whom she was 

^ Correspondance, 373-76. 



FAMILY LIFE 405 

entrusted, she was allowed to go about and to talk with friends 
whom she met, while the oflBcer kept at a distance. But even 
this small measure of liberty allowed her provoked the dis- 
content of the people, and complaint was made by certain 
women that undue favoritism was being shown and that the 
wife of a poor man would not have been so treated — a signi- 
ficant evidence of the popular feeling toward the Girondins.^ 

Whether this hounding of poor Madame Brissot resulted at 
once in curtailing her liberty does not appear, but at all events, 
on the 30th of October, on the order of the Committee of 
General Security, she, with her child (probably the youngest), 
was put in prison at La Force. ^ Here she remained till the 19th 
of the following February, when she was released by order of 
the same Committee.^ 

Though the record of these weeks is a blank, the loneliness 
and torturing anxiety which she suffered can readily be con- 
ceived. On her release she had to face the problem of providing 
for her family. It was a weary struggle, and had she not been 
able to take advantage of the tiu'ning tide of public opinion in 
favor of the Girondins, she must have succumbed. Embold- 
ened by this changing attitude, she made request in May, 1795, 
for the restoration of her husband's papers,^ — a request which 
after some delay was finally granted.^ A few months later she 
ventured to put in a claim for herseK and for her children for 
the losses she had sustained because of the persecution of which 
she and her husband had been the victims. Immediately after 
the fatal 31st of May, she wrote, her husband and she had been 
obliged to separate and to abandon their home, which was 
closed by the government. She had been obliged to wander 

' Rapport de V observation. La Tour-La-Montagne, A. N., F'' 36883. 

* Extrait du registre des mandats d'amener du comiti de sHrete generate, A. N., 
AFn 289; Tuetey, viii, 3367. 

' Lettre par le concierge adjoint de la maison de la Petite Force, Paris, I**" ven- 
tose, an II (February 19, 1794). See Correspondance, 397. 

* Requete de la veuve de Brissot, A. N., W 292, M 204 (^ partie) ; Tuetey, 
VIII, 566. 

' Correspondance, 401. 



406 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

about for several months, seeking a refuge for herself and her 
children, till she herself was imprisoned. The journeys which 
she had made, the apartments which she had been obliged to 
rent in different places, caused her unusual expenses, which she 
was able to meet only with the generous aid of relatives and 
friends. And when, finally, she was able to reclaim her furni- 
ture and her husband's library, she received only a part of it 
and that part was in bad condition. She perceived with grief 
that a large part had been stolen, spoiled or lost. She had had 
made, she added, an appraisal by a competent authority. Be- 
sides this loss there were the expenses which she had been 
obliged to undergo, which brought the whole amount to 80,510 
francs.^ This sum she begged the government to reimburse. 
To this request the government acceded in part, by ordering 
the payment of 50,000 francs "for the property which had 
been taken from her during the imprisonment of her husband." 
The other expenses it was evidently unwilling to make good.^ 
This was in September, 1795. The next month the general 
trend of opinion in favor of the Girondins was evidenced by the 
action of the Convention. Those proscribed deputies who had 
succeeded in escaping were re-admitted to the Convention, and 
those to whom it was too late to make reparation received the 
recompense of being honored as "martyrs of liberty." On the 
8d of October, 1795, a special celebration was held in their 
memory. Every member of the Convention wore crape on his 
arm; a funeral urn was set up in the hall bearing the inscrip- 
tion: "To the magnanimous defenders of liberty, who died in 
prison or upon the scaffold during the tyranny"; and the 
President made an eloquent address in which he recalled the 
services rendered to liberty by the martyred representatives 
of the people, "their constant courage and their tragic end."' 

' Note the amount; it was evidently reckoned in the depreciated paper cur- 
rency. For example, three tablecloths were estimated at 2500 francs. The 
list included underclothing, dresses, table-linen, ornaments, household furni- 
ture, wine, and books. Correspondance, 402-07. 

^ Correspondance, 408. 

^ Proces-verbal de la Convention, October 3, 1795. 



FAMILY LIFE 407 

The next year more tangible reparation was made by the 
government of the Directory. The 26th of April, 1796, the 
Council of Five Hundred decreed that, "considering that Va- 
laze, Petion, Carra, Buzot, Gorsas, Brissot, members of the 
National Convention, are of those representatives of the peo- 
ple, who, after having cooperated to establish liberty and to 
found the Republic, sealed it with their blood, and died victims 
of their devotion to the country and of their respect for the 
rights of the nation," the widow of each of them should have a 
pension of two thousand francs a year for herself, and a pension 
of two thousand francs a year for each of her children till he 
should have reached the age of fifteen years. ^ In accordance 
with this decree, Madame Brissot was given a pension. Thus, 
support of his family, which in his dying moments he had felt 
confident would in some manner be provided for, was in part, 
at least, undertaken by the government. ^ But even with this 
help it was with much difficulty that Madame Brissot man- 
aged to get along. She was thoroughly weary of the struggle, 
but somehow or other a means of support must be found, 
and in 1799, with her mother and sisters, she attempted to 
establish a school at Versailles. An announcement under the 
heading, "Education de famille sous la direction de citoyenne 
Clery, veuve Dwpont, a Versailles, rue du Peuple frangais, no. 4," 
in which they set forth in the most alluring terms at their com- 
mand the advantages of their establishment, appeared in the 
Decade philosophique. Their experience of the world, the suc- 
cess of Madame Dupont with her own children, the good loca- 
tion, the fine air, and beautiful gardens are all pictm-ed as 
making their school especially desirable. A note, apparently 
by the editor of the DScade, adds that it may interest the public 
to know that the citizens Dupont and Clery are the mother-in- 
law, widow, and sisters-in-law of Brissot.' 

^ Risohdion du conseil des Cinq-Cents, 7 florSal, an IV, quoted in Vatel, 
Charlotte Cor day et les Girondins, ii, 27. 

' Recompense nationale, 9 floreal, an IV, A. N., F^* 570. 

' Article by M. Perroud referred to above. See also Correspondance, 418-19. 



408 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

The project does not seem to have succeeded, and Madame 
Brissot was obliged to ask help from the government. She 
seems to have considered the possibility of obtaining a sub- 
sidy for a school (probably the one referred to above); but 
when this fell through she tried to get a place as directress 
in one of the hospitals, a position which she sought rather be- 
cause it was the only thing available than because she felt any 
special fitness for the work. Indeed, she frankly confessed in 
a private letter that she much preferred educational work, and 
that after her long struggle with misfortune she felt as though 
she were recovering from an illness and doubted her adequacy 
to the task.^ 

She finally appears to have found a means of livelihood in 
a reading-room or bookshop which she maintained at no. 7 rue 
du Commerce, Paris, while she and her mother lived around 
the corner on the rue de Furstenburg.^ 

While seeking government employment for herself, she had 
also applied to the government for aid in the education of her 
children. On one occasion she asked for a place for her young- 
est son in the College des Colonies. Two of her sons had been 
placed at Saint-Cyr, but as one of them preferred the marine 
service, she asked that a scholarship given to the first be trans- 
ferred to the second. She was evidently disturbed as to the 
condition of one of them, at least, for she added that she would 
prefer to have the amount of the scholarship in money, "be- 
cause if there are characters whom public education improves, 
there are others whom it develops too rapidly before their 
judgment has been cultivated. " ^ 

The second son, Silvain, seems to have had something of his 
father's restlessness and independence, and his manifestations 
of the latter were not always well judged. While a pupil at 
the Ecole poly technique, it is reported that he refused to take 

^ Correspondance, 422-24. 

* Bib. Nat., Papiers de Roland, iii, fr. nouv. acq. 9534, f. 392. 

* Letters of Madame Brissot to various ministers, noted in the catalogue 
of the Collection Charavay, See also Correspondance, 418, 421, 424-25. 



FAMILY LIFE 409 

the oath to the emperor — a refusal which, considering that he 
was a pensionnaire of the government, was decidedly ill-advised 
and which naturally led to his prompt retirement from the 
school. "All the pupils were solemnly convoked to take an 
oath of fidelity to the emperor," wrote Miss Helena Williams, 
who declares that she relates this episode on the authority of 
the boy's grandmother from whom she heard it the next day. 
"The president called the boys one by one. When the turn of 
the young Brissot came: ' You swear,' said the president, 'fidel- 
ity to the emperor?' The young man answered with a firm 
voice, 'No.' The president, as you may well imagine, was 
absolutely taken back by this brusque declaration, and the 
whole company was stupefied with astonishment. Finally they 
ventured to ask Brissot what was the reason for his refusal. 
'I am too young,' he answered, 'to pass judgment on political 
matters; what I know is that my father died on the scaffold for 
the Republic, and I am a republican.'" ^ 

Whether on account of this episode, or for other reasons, is 
not clear, but in 1816, Silvain went to America.^ Here he seems 
to have met failure at every turn. From the tone of his letters 
one cannot help but suspect that it was, in part at least, his own 
fault. Frangois Dupont had been struck by the liberty, the 
democracy, of the new country. What especially impressed 
Silvain were the crude manners, the lack of ceremony, the 
paucity of means (jf amusement. His constant lament is his 
lack of funds; he needs two hundred francs a month, he has 
only one hundred twenty; he has borrowed money, he hopes 
his mother will pay it; can she not send him more soon? He is 
giving French lessons as a means of livelihood, he ought to be 
studying English, but time is lacking for it; there are too many 
French people in New York, he ought to get away in order 
to have better opportunities for acquiring English, but, as he 
already owes money at his boarding-house, he cannot leave. 

^ Helena Williams, Souvenirs, 23-24. She is not always reliable. 
* He was for a time at Guadaloupe. Letters to his mother and his grand- 
mother. Correspondance, 434-40. 



410 BRISSOT DE WARVTLLE 

These are some of his laments and must have been trying 
news for his mother at home. 

He did finally manage to get down to New Orleans, where he 
fell in with relatives of his mother's family, who secm-ed for him 
a place on a Louisiana plantation. His stay here, however, was 
short. He complained that he was shut ofip from all that made 
life worth while; he wrote unfortunate articles for the New 
Orleans newspapers which stirred up trouble; and finally he 
quarreled with his employer. He then returned to New York, 
whence he wrote to his mother with bitter upbraidings for not 
sending him money. His sad straits, though he himself may 
have been responsible for them, cannot fail to arouse sym- 
pathy. He was practically penniless and friendless. He finally 
secured a position at Albany as a teacher of mathematics and 
French in a school there, but the school was a poor affair, his 
room was cold and cheerless, and he could not collect his salary. 
In this desperate situation he fell ill and died on March 16, 
1819.^ The eldest son, who had sought a career in the marine, 
died in Santo Domingo; while the youngest son, Anacharsis, 
the only one who was anything of a success, became a farmer 
in the Department of the Yonne.^ 

No one of her three children was apparently of any help to 
Madame Brissot. They all were, on the other hand, a source 
of care and anxiety. Silvain especially, with his only too evi- 
dent failures and his constant and petulant demands for money, 
occasioned his family much distress. Finally, worn out with 

^ Letters of Silvain Brissot, Correspondance, 434-44. The notice of his 
death was sent to Madame Aublay (Nancy Dupont) by Miers Fisher. Ibid., 
444. 

* Nauroy, Curieus, no. 29, May, 1886. "Le troisiimefils de Brissot, Jacques 
JSrome Anacharsis, naquit d, Paris le 31 mars, 1791; il paratt avoir aime lea 
voyages, je le trouve officier de hussards sous I 'empire, proprietaire au kameau du 
Vol Saint-Btienne, commune de Veron {Yonne) en 1818, marchand de vins en 
gros A Paris, chaussSe de Minilmontant, no. 57, en 1827, controleur gSneral de la 
navigation de la Seine avant 185i, demeurant & Corbeil (Seine-et-Oise) en 185Jf; 
tout cela ne I'a pas empechS d'icrire les ouvrages cites dans l' Inter mediaire, 
XVIII, p. 436. (For another record of his activities, see Correspondance, 431- 
33.) 



FAMILY LIFE 411 

her anxieties and disappointments, she died on January 4, 
1818, one year before Silvain, and was buried at Pere Lachaise, 
at the expense of her sister Nancy, now Madame Aublay.^ She 
died as much a victim of the Revolution as though she had 
met death on the scaffold, and her life was one of its unseen 
and unnoticed tragedies. 

1 See article by M. Perroud referred to above. 



CHAPTER XIV 

bhissot's general policy and character 

In summing up Brissot's part in the French Revolution, the 
questions naturally arise: What were his general principles? 
What was his relation to the Girondins as a party? How far 
was he a typical Girondin? 

The long-accepted view of the policy of the Girondins has, 
within the last few years, been shown to be mere tradition and 
legend. They were reputed to be federalists, royalists, aristo- 
crats, but opponents of bloodshed and advocates of mercy. 
Recent investigation has made evident on the contrary that 
they were republican in policy, democratic in spirit, and quite 
as sanguinary as the Mountain; and if it has not been proved 
that they were not federalists in any sense of the word, proof 
is lacking that they were federalists in the sense meant by the 
Mountain.^ This change, which has taken place regarding the 
conception of the party as a whole, applies likewise to Brissot. 
The same ideas were imputed to him as an individual, and 
they are likewise disproved. 

He was the friend of the Duke of Orleans, it was asserted, and 
in July, 1791, he was working in favor of the House of Orleans 
and not at all for a republic; and when the real republicans 
were forced to flee, he walked the streets of Paris immolested. 
Further, he was a warm personal friend of Lafayette and con- 
tinued to be even after Lafayette began to show his royalist 
sympathies. He delayed the establishment of the Republic for 
the sake of keeping his friends in oflBce, tried to stop the in- 
surrection of August 10 and attempted to betray France to 
the Duke of Brunswick. When once the Republic was pro- 
claimed, he worked as hard to overthrow it as he had to pre- 
vent its establishment. He deliberately brought on foreign war 
^ Aulard, Histoire politique, 395, 402. 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 413 

when he knew the country was not ready for it; tried to save 
the king by an appeal to the people; and was hand and glove 
with the traitor Dumouriez. Finally, from the very beginning 
of the Revolution he used his influence in colonial affairs with 
the one purpose of stirring up the colonies to revolt. 

These were the charges. As to their justification: in regard 
to several charges it must be admitted that Brissot's defense 
was rather weak; for instance, his freedom from arrest in the 
reaction which immediately followed the flight to Varennes is 
not explained, and he certainly showed his approval of La- 
fayette, up to the very eve of the massacre of July 17. But 
concerning the real substance of the charge that he was an 
Orleanist, or that he did not want a republic at all, there is no 
proof. On his own admission he did delay the establishment of 
a republic in the summer of 1791, but only because he did not 
think the time ripe for it, and even in July, 1792, he feared 
that the revolt might be premature. The claim that his hesita- 
tion was due only to expediency is borne out by his writings. 
Ever since his journey to the United States he had not ceased 
to laud the glories of a republic. And in the face of his repeated 
assertion that a republic was an ideal form of government, to 
assert that he was opposed to a republic, per se, is in itself an 
absurdity. He certainly did everything in his power, by his 
attack on royalty and on the ministry, to render the position 
of the monarch untenable, and to bring monarchy to its down- 
fall. All claim that he tried to overthrow the Republic after it 
was once established is equally without ground. On one point, 
indeed, he failed to clear himself, for, in spite of his efforts to 
disprove all connection with Dumouriez, Brissot's correspond- 
ence and the support which he gave Dumoiu-iez in his paper 
seemed to indicate cordial relations up to the last. But of any 
traitorous designs of his own toward the Republic there is not 
a shred of reliable evidence. 

A second misapprehension concerning the Girondins is that 
they regarded with horror the shedding of blood. Their ene- 
mies, however, did not hold any such views regarding them. 



414 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

and at the trial of the Girondins, they attempted to fasten upon 
Brissot in particular approval of the massacres of September. 
It must be admitted that in this case they succeeded fairly 
well. In answer to the accusations Brissot declared that he had 
never ceased to denounce the massacres. But the point was, 
when did he begin? He asserted, it is true, that he had begged 
and prayed and implored Danton to put a stop to the massa- 
cres, but apparently he did not mention this appeal till the 
siunmer of 1793. At all events, his references at the time to 
the massacres show no particular horror. Far from denouncing 
them, he echoed Roland's mild remark: "Yesterday [Roland 
is speaking of September 3] was a day over the events of which 
it is perhaps necessary to draw a veil." ^ It is to be remembered 
however, that the Girondins were then in danger themselves, 
and it would have required extreme courage to make any pro- 
test. Brissot's general attitude at this period, however, if it 
may be judged by the action of the Committee of Twenty-one, 
of which he was president, and in which it must be supposed 
he had some influence, was not one of clemency. For under the 
direction of that committee drafts of laws were presented sup- 
pressing the right of appeal, ordering arrests, and extending 
the punishment of death. Further, although Brissot with the 
other Girondins was a bitter enemy of the men who afterward 
directed the government of the Terror with all its horrors of 
bloodshed, it must be remembered that he did not shrink from 
that foreign war which in large part made the Terror necessary; 
but that, on the contrary, it was he who was largely responsi- 
ble for it. 

As for Brissot's connection with federalism, it has already 
been shown that, although he was strongly inclined to federal- 
ism in theory, proof is lacking that he tried to put federalism 
into practice or to break up the unity and indivisibility of the 
Republic. 

Finally, it was charged that the Girondins were undemo- 
cratic; that they held themselves apart from the multitude; 
^ Patriote FranQais, September 5, 1792. 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 415 

that they were the aristocrats of the Revolution; or, as ex- 
pressed by some modem socialists, that they were the very 
personification of the bourgeois element in bitter hostility to 
the proletariat.^ A special charge was brought against Brissot 
in this connection, that he was an enemy of popular societies. 
On one occasion, it is true, he had written that people needed 
to be on their guard, that clubs, like old tools, became blunt 
and rusty. But this remark was inspired by the fact that he 
was just then assailing the monarchical club, not because it 
was a club, but because it was monarchical. Indeed, he was 
careful to add that clubs should be checked only when they 
were bad; when they were good they should be fostered, for 
they performed a most useful function in helping to create 
public opinion and in keeping watch over public functionaries. 
It was precisely from public officials who objected to this in- 
convenient censorship, he declared, that much of the criticism 
of the clubs emanated. 

The accusation of opposition in general to democracy is like- 
wise without foundation. Indeed, in summing up Brissot's part 
in the French Revolution, the one word which best character- 
izes his policy is democratic. From his earliest days he was the 
antagonist of arbitrary and despotic government in all its 
forms, and the upholder of the rights of man. A declaration of 
these rights, he maintained, when that subject was discussed, 
was as necessary to a constitution as was a foundation to a 
house. It was in no sense, he added, with emphasis, a granting 
of rights, — no power on earth could do that, — but merely 
a statement of what inevitably existed. In the interpretation 
of these rights he stood for the most thoroughgoing equality. 
No titles of nobility; participation by every one in municipal 
government; no distinction between active and passive citi- 
zens ; population the sole basis of representation ; a direct 
method of election for members of the legislative body; no 
life tenures for judges; admission of women and of passive as 
well as active citizens to popular societies; the abolition of 
^ Kropotkin, La Grande Revolution, 457. 



416 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

primogeniture, no social forms to indicate distinctions between 
classes ; and finally, the immediate extension of the principles 
of the Revolution to the colonies, at least to the extent of rec- 
ognizing the civil rights of the mulattoes, and the ultimate 
abolition of slavery: these were some of the measures which, 
as has been seen, he regarded as imperative if there were to be 
anything like real equality. 

But Brissot was the champion not only of "the people," as a 
whole, but of the poor especially. While he held certain ab- 
stract theories of socialistic tendency, in practical politics he 
was certainly not a socialist in the present use of the term. He 
was emphatically opposed to state control in economic matters 
and vehemently protested against the suspicion of cherishing 
a desire to attack property.^ Yet at the same time he was in 
favor of various measures which might be said to be socialistic 
in character, tending to the advantage of the poor and to 
minimizing the differences of opportunity between rich and 
poor, as, for instance, the issuing of small assignats, the aboli- 
tion of the octrois, the prohibition of bequests in the collat- 
eral line, and the exemption from taxation of the necessities 
for physical life. 

Liberty, too, as well as democracy, was to be extended as 
rapidly and as thoroughly as possible. In economic questions 
he stood for liberty by upholding freedom of trade. Liberty of 
the press he not only claimed as an abstract right, but also 
took the lead in seizing it for himself by establishing the Pa- 
triote Frangais in defiance of a rigorous censorship. He was also 
the ardent champion of those hitherto despised classes whose 
liberty had been so greatly restricted, — Jews, Protestants, 
and actors. 

In order that these rights might be preserved he maintained 

further the necessity of the fullest extension of the sovereignty 

' It is largely because of his support of the right of property that he is as- 
sailed by such writers as Kropotkin. See La Grande Revolution, 457. "Ilfaut 
lire Brissot pour comprendre tout ce que preparaient les bourgeois alors pour la 
France, et ce que les Brissotins du vingtieme siecle prSparent encore partout oil une 
rholution va eclater." 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 417 

of the people. It was for this end that he stood for the limita- 
tion of the king's power by a suspensive instead of an abso- 
lute veto, by checking his authority in declarations of peace and 
war, by prohibiting his choice of a ministry from the legisla- 
tive body, and then by making the ministry which he did choose 
responsible to that body. Further, in order that the will of the 
people might be carried out more promptly, he would have but 
one chamber instead of two; he would give the suffrage to all; 
and he would not put a new constitution into effect till it 
should have been submitted to the people. He was in fact but 
too ready to regard the voice of the people as the voice of God, 
even when it was raised in violation of constituted authority 
and international agreements, as in the case of the annexation 
of Avignon. Even the risings of the mob — "popular move- 
ments" in his euphemistic phrase, "were to be expected and 
desired among a people who are not yet freed, especially 
among a people a large share of whom are excluded from 
making of the laws." 

The rights which he was working to secure in these various 
ways he would not limit to France, but would extend to all 
mankind. His patriotism was not French, it was cosmopolitan. 
To spread the principles of the French Revolution among the 
oppressed everywhere was a good reason, it seemed to him, for 
making war on despotic governments. As M. Aulard says: 
"He was not an exclusive patriot; the Revolution, in his view, 
ought to be made for the profit of all oppressed nations, of all 
humanity whatever its race; for the profit of the negro as well 
as of the white man.^ " In short, in spite of his advocacy of war, 
it may fairly be assumed that were he alive to-day, he would 
find his most congenial place among the supporters of universal 
brotherhood. 

So far, then, Brissot's policy, except that he was rather more 

cosmopolitan than the rest, seems to be typically Girondin, and 

therefore, as M. Aulard has shown of the party in general, very 

like the policy of the Mountain to which it has been thought 

^ Aulard, Orateurs de la Revolution, i, 233. 



418 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

to be diametrically opposed. The only real difference between 
the Girondins and the Mountain, M. Aulard maintains, wais 
that the Mountain wanted Paris to have the supremacy over 
the departments during the war, and that the Girondins were 
opposed to such supremacy. If this distinction be true, Brissot 
was again a typical Girondin, for, from July, 1792, until the 
time of his trial, he never ceased to attack what seemed to him 
a rank usurpation of power by the capital city. 

But this distinction given by M. Aulard is based only on the 
policy of the respective parties. M. Faguet, in his criticism of 
M. Aulard, goes one step further and points out a tempera- 
mental difference.^ According to M. Faguet, the real difference 
between the Girondins and the Mountain lay not so much in 
a clear-cut divergence of opinion on the political questions 
of the time as in a fundamental difference of character: the 
Girondins were "men of principle," and the Jacobins "oppor- 
tunists." In the case of Brissot this is evidently true, at least as 
far as his colonial and foreign policies were concerned. His guid- 
ing principle in regard to the colonies was that the slave trade 
should be abolished and rights of citizenship given to the 
mulattoes. To these principles he persistently clung, in spite 
of all warnings of the disasters to which too precipitate action 
must inevitably lead. Even when the prophesies of the plant- 
ers were fulfilled and frightful insurrection broke out, he would 
not believe that it was due in any degree to the extreme meas- 
ures which he himself had been instrumental in instituting. 

The question of the war was a still more marked instance of 
adherence, on the part of Brissot and of the other Girondins 
as well, to a fixed principle, in utter disregard of circumstances. 
Despotism was an evil, he argued; therefore despotism must be 
attacked; diplomacy was an agency of despotism; therefore all 
diplomacy must be disregarded. And when the opponents of 
these radical ideas suggested that before beginning the attack 
on despotism it might be well to consider the resources for such 
an attack, and that in the question of diplomacy it was worth 
1 Remie de Deux Monies, August 15, 1901, 5th period, iv, 631-59. ' 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 419 

while, simply as a matter of policy, not to offend diplomatic 
etiquette, he went so far as to declare that such ideas savored 
not only of cowardice but of actual anti-revolutionary tend- 
ency. The suggestion that the circumstances of the case were 
to be considered, he scorned as a positively traitorous idea. 

The hypothesis that Brissot and the Girondins were "men 
of principle" does not, however, adequately account for their 
attitude in respect to the other subjects of accusation. What 
principles can be discovered in their uncertain attitude toward 
the dethronement of the king and the establishment of the 
Republic, or in their passive acquiesence in the massacres of 
September, or in their divided opinion on the trial of the king, 
or even in their persistent opposition to Paris .5^ The full an- 
tithesis to "men of circumstances," as applied to the Moun- 
tain, is not "men of principle." Something more is needed to 
cover the whole case. It is true that the Girondins were " men 
of principle" in so far as they were idealists, but they did not 
always have ideals, and where they failed to have ideals they 
did not substitute a feasible policy. Like the Mountain, they 
were sometimes guided by circumstances, but unlike the Moun- 
tain, they were not well guided. In other words, they were 
unpractical. 

In this respect again Brissot was a typical Girondin. There 
is no doubt that he \ras a thorough republican in theory; but 
when it came to the crisis he failed to take a decisive stand, 
and during the critical fifty days from June 20 to August 10, 
when the overthrow of the monarchy became an urgent ques- 
tion, he did not seem to know what course to take. While 
claiming to support the monarchy, he attacked the king with 
such violence as to make the continuance of the monarchy 
impossible. Moreover, at the trial of the king his idea appar- 
ently was to get rid of responsibility by appealing to the people, 
and in the so-called federalist movement, while he was constant 
in his hatred of Paris, he was unable to unite his party in any 
feasible scheme for joining the provinces against it. 

In so far he was a typical Girondin. How far was he really 



420 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

the head of the group? He certainly was a leader of the Giron- 
dins in the sense that he was one of the most prominent of their 
number, a person of definite influence and position within the 
party. This opinion was universally held at the time;^ the 
conviction was expressed by his enemies when they fastened 
the term "Brissotin" to one wing of the party; the fact is ad- 
mitted in all the writings of his friends; it comes out in the trial; 
it was recognized by the Buzot faction; and it is apparent in 
the ranks of impartial spectators like Dumont. 

Just who were included among the Brissotins it is somewhat 
difficult to state, especially as the term was variously used and 
amid shifting political affiliations : sometimes meaning the spe- 
cial adherents of Brissot in his war policy; sometimes the 
supporters of the Girondin ministry; sometimes the leaders in 
the opposition to the Commune of Paris in August, 1792; and 
finally, after the opening of the Convention, that faction of the 
Gironde which was less actively engaged in the federalist con- 
troversy, in contrast with the Buzotins who led the struggle. 
Gensonne, Guadet, Claviere, and Valaze, and for a time Ro- 
land, Condorcet, and Vergniaud, might perhaps be most 
properly classed as Brissotins. 

That the Brissotins kept together as well as they did was due 
partly to the fact that they were accustomed to meet fre- 
quently, in informal gatherings or clubs, to talk over their ideas 
and to lay out a plan of action in the Assembly — according 
to their enemies, to intrigue, to hatch plots. Their first gather- 
ings were held four times a week at Madame Roland's, where 
it was Brissot who introduced the other deputies.^ Number 5 
Place Vendome, the apartment of a woman named Odun,^ the 
homes of the banker, Biderman,^ of Valaze ^ and Buzot, ^ were 

^ Note, for instance, Les Revolutions de Paris, November 5, 1792: "Brissot 
n 'est pas sans talents, sans merite, mais jamais conception hardie ne sortira de 
son cerveau. . . . Apth lui, les plus dangereux de son parti sont Guadet, Ver- 
gniaud, Gensonnt. . . . Quels sont les autres? Buzot, Barharoux, Kersaint, etc. 
Voila ce qu 'on appelle, d hon droit, Brissot et sa coterie." 

^ Memoires de Madame Roland, i, 63. 

2 Dumont, Souvenirs, 374. * Ibid., 266. ' Moniteur, May 24, 1793. 

• Thermometre du jour, n. 526, June 9, 1793. That meetings were held at 
Buzot's was denied by Madame Roland. See her Memoires, n, 57. . 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 421 

places of frequent meeting. Brissot, it was asserted, was most 
assiduous in his attendance, and was the heart and soul of 
these gatherings. While admitting that such gatherings took 
place, Brissot denied that they were devoted to intrigue or that 
he was a frequent attendant. That he was the chief of the 
party he also denied. " I, chief of a party ! " he exclaimed. " I, a 
solitary man, knowing scarcely forty members of the Assem- 
bly, appearing rarely at the tribune, frequenting neither clubs, 
nor sections, nor committees!"^ Nor was he generally ac- 
knowledged as a leader by the Girondins most closely asso- 
ciated with him. As one writer puts it, "Brissot's authority 
was neither avowed by himself nor recognized even by those 
who, nevertheless, did nothing without consulting him." It 
remains true, however, that from the autumn of 1791 to the 
publication of Desmoulins's Histoire des Brissotins, the term 
"Brissotin" was freely and frequently used, with the obvious 
implication of leadership and authority. 

Such a position he could not have obtained had he not been 
a person of strong character. But what his character was is a 
question on which most divergent views are held. He has been 
judged to be everything, from a rogue and a scoundrel to a 
saint and a martyr. The former opinion is that of his most 
violent opponents among the members of the Mountain. In 
their denunciations he appears as a man of great subtlety, a 
political intriguer, constantly scheming for his own benefit, and 
utterly careless of the means by which he obtained his end.^ 
A more impartial view is that of Dumont, but even he agrees 
with the Mountain in considering Brissot an intriguer. Du- 
mont's judgment is all the more valuable because he had orig- 
inally a high opinion of Brissot, an opinion which he main- 
tained till the Delessart episode. "From that time," he writes, 
"Brissot fell in my estimation. I did not come to a rupture 
with him, but my friendship weakened with my esteem. I had 

* Patriate Frangais, April 20, 1793. 

* For a consideration of Brissot's character see Aulard, Histoire politique, 
405. 



422 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

formerly known him candid and generous; he was now insidi- 
ous and persecuting. If he had any qualms of conscience — for 
Brissot was both a moral and a religious man — they were al- 
layed by the pretended necessity of saving the state. It is in 
times of political faction that we see illustrations of the correct- 
ness of the ideas of Helvetius upon what constitutes virtue. 
Brissot was faithfid to his party, but a traitor to integrity."^ 
"Brissot was one of those men," Dumont says on another oc- 
casion, "in whom party spirit prevailed over right and justice; 
or rather, he confined right and justice to his own party. He 
had more of the zeal of the monk than any man I ever knew. 
Had he been a Capuchin he would have doted upon his stafif 
and his vermin — a Dominican, he would have burned heretics 
— a Roman, he would have proved not unworthy of Cato and 
Regulus. But he was a French republican, who had deter- 
mined to overthrow the monarchy; and to accomplish this 
object he hesitated not to calumniate, to persecute, and to per- 
ish himself upon the scaffold." ^ 

M. Aulard, on the other hand, calls attention to an opinion 
held even by some men of the Moimtain — to the effect that 
Brissot was lacking in partisanship. Cloots, for example, in his 
pamphlet, Ni Marat ni Roland, said that as for Brissot he never 
knew a man less hrissotin than he. And when Danton wanted 
to annoy Brissot he would say: "Brissot, you are a hrissotin" ^ 
Buzot bears like testimony. "He was," says Buzot, "so little 
adapted by nature to intrigue that the mere suggestion of dis- 
simulation or anything underhand was a punishment to him. 
We used to make fun sometimes of his simplicity, of his good 
nature, and we would say in fun: *0f all possible Brissotins he 
is the least hrissotin.'" * According to Girey-Dupre, he lived 
like Aristides and died like Sidney.^ Clarkson says of him: 
"Brissot was a man of plain and modest appearance. His 

* Dumont, Souvenirs, 380. The translation is that of the Recollections, 312. 

2 Ibid., 357; Recollections, 295. 

' Aulard, Eistoire 'politique, 405. * Buzot, MSmoires, 16. 

^ Brissot, Memoires, ed. by Montrol; Preface, iii. 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 423 

habits, contrary to those of his countrymen in general, were 
domestic. In his family he set an amiable example, both as a 
husband and as a father. On all occasions he was a faithful 
friend. He was particularly watchful over his private conduct. 
From the simplicity of his appearance and the severity of his 
morals, he was called 'The Quaker'; at least in the circles which 
he frequented. He was a man of deep feeling. He was chari- 
table to the poor, as far as his slender income permitted him. 
But his benevolence went beyond the usual bounds. He was 
no patriot in the ordinary acceptation of the word; for he took 
the habitable globe as his country and wished to consider every 
foreigner as his brother." ^ Madame Roland testifies to the 
same effect. "Brissot's simple manner," she says, "his frank- 
ness, his natiu-al ease seemed to me in perfect harmony with 
the austerity of his principles. . . . He is the best of men, a good 
husband, a tender father, a faithful friend, a virtuous citizen."^ 
Madame Roland might have added that he did not suffer 
from too lowly an appreciation of his own virtues. But if his 
writings betray a decided tendency to self-glorification, they 
have at the same time every mark of simplicity and earnest- 
ness, and tend to bear out the opinion of Brissot's friends rather 
than that of his enemies. His actions, however, are not quite so 
consistent with disingenuousness and perfect uprightness. For 
instance, he was ready to use in the cause of the Revolution 
the same despotic means which he had attacked as among the 
greatest evils of the old regime, and his conduct toward De- 
lessart is not above question. But that he ever betrayed the 
colonies or sold his vote or his influence, either to the court or to 
any foreign power, though repeatedly alleged, is absolutely with- 
out proof. It is tolerably certain that on one occasion, at least, 
money was offered him. "There are many persons now living," 
wrote an English contemporary of Brissot in 1798, "who know 
that during the spirited animadversions of Brissot on the 
cabals at court which he denominated Austrian Committees, a 

1 Clarkson, History of the Abolition of the Slave Trade, ii, 165-66. 
* Memoires, i, 197. 



434 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

hundred thousand livres were tendered as the price of either 
his silence or his friendship; and that, hving in a garret into 
which he ascended by four flights of stairs, and having a wife 
and three children depending on his stipend as deputy and the 
trifling produce of his newspaper, he declined the offer without 
noise or ostentation." ^ A more striking evidence of Brissot's 
incorruptibility was the Soulavie episode. Shortly after the 
20th of June, 1792, it will be remembered,^ Soulavie was offered 
eight hundred thousand francs by Chambonas, the minister of 
finance, with which to win over Brissot to the side of the court, 
but declined to undertake the commission, as he was sure that 
it would be utterly useless. Brissot would repulse him, he de- 
clared, at the mere suggestion.^ This is all the more convincing 
because Soulavie was opposed to Brissot politically and dis- 
liked him personally. 

Far from amassing a fortune, he lived and died poor. He may 
not have been a saint, but he certainly was not a rogue. The 
truth lies between these extremes. He was an enthusiast — an 
erring and self -deceived one sometimes, but he was not a hypo- 
crite. As Lescure says of him: "There was in his life more than 
one error, more than one fault, but there was nothing crimi- 
nal." ' 

The testimony of Brissot's friends, however, is more con- 
vincing evidence of his moral character than of his fitness for 
leadership. According to Madame Roland, he was "confident 
even to imprudence, happy, naive, ingenuous as a boy of fifteen; 

1 Phillips, Biographical Anecdotes, 13. ' See p. 287. 

• Chambonas: " Vous voyez done que cet homme {Brissot) est interessi. Ilfaut 
done que vous vous chargiez de le gagner. On ne demande pas qu 'il quitte ses opi- 
nions, mais simplement qu 'il suspende son plan de dSchSance. Nous avons a voire 
disposition cent mille livres. Si cette somme ne svffit pas, offrez quatre cent mille 
livres, puis cinq cents. Allez jusqu 'd huit cents; mais ne pasez pas, c'est la limite 
de nos pouvoirs; mais il faut qu 'il adopte notre projet d 'ajoumement de la dS- 
cheance. ..." Soulavie: " Si j'avais quelque lueur, quelque esperance de reussir, 
je me devouerais d voire commission; mais je dois vous dire qu 'une telle ouverture 
auffira pour que Brissot me repousse." Soulavie, Mhnoires hisioriques, vi, 
429-30. 

* Brissot, Memoir es, ed. by Lescure; Preface, ii. 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 425 

he was made to be companion of wise men and the dupe of 
rogues." He was a good judge of men, she adds, but he did 
not know men at all.^ Brissot's mother-in-law evidently held 
the same opinion, for, just as he was starting for America, she 
wrote warning him that he would be likely to meet men more 
subtle than he, and exhorting him to be on his guard.^ 

Petion says of him that he was the embodiment of disinter- 
estedness; that he allowed people to use his ideas without giv- 
ing him any acknowledgment; that his only thought was to be 
useful.^ "I have known Brissot from his infancy," Petion de- 
clared on another occasion; "I have seen him in those moments 
when the very soul shows itself, when a man abandons himself 
without reserve to friendship, to confidence; I have known his 
disinterestedness, I have known his principles; I protest to you 
that they are pure. Those who make of him the head of a party 
have not the slightest idea of his character; he is a man of 
intelligence and learning; but he has neither reserve nor the 
faculty of dissimulation, neither the attractive personality nor 
the spirit de suite which make a party leader, and what will 
surprise you is that far from leading others, he is very easily 
imposed upon." * 

Phillips, the Englishman referred to above, who evidently 
wrote from a friendly point of view, describes Brissot as "a 
votary of true Philosophy whenever he heard her voice or 
clearly understood her principles; but those principles were not 
familiar to his mind; they were not always of his own acquisi- 
tion; and the simplicity and integrity of his heart induced him 
to confide in others with blind credulity." ^ In summing up 

^ Memoires, \, 197. Meilhan in his memoirs (p. 99), confirms this: "Qui- 
conque a connu Brissot doit savoir que personne n 'etait moins propre a former un 
parti. C etait un homme de cabinet, studievx, sedentaire, d'une societe douce et 
paisible, mais depourvu de I'audace sans laquelle on n' est jamais chef en aucun 
genre. II avait meme une facilite de caracthre qui le plaqait d la suite des autres 
plutot qu'd leur tete." 

2 Correspondance, 191. ' Notice sur Brissot, in Vatel. Vergniaud, ii, 240. 

* Discours de Jerome Petion sur V accusation intentee contre Robespierre, non 
prononcS mais imprime en novembre, 1793. Quoted by Vatel, Charlotte Corday 
ct les Girondins, ii, 219, note. 

^ Phillips, Biographical Anecdotes, u, 15. 



426 BRISSOT DE WARVILLE 

Brissot's career, Phillips says again: "As a politician, his heart 
was better directed than his head — he wanted knowledge of 
mankind. His reason was therefore misled by his imagination; 
and his credulity and reliance on the pretensions of others ren- 
dered him totally mifit for any important share in the adminis- 
tration of national business." ^ In short, as Bailleul ^ says, he 
was not a man of the world. ^ 

Brissot also lacked an imposing physical presence. He was 
short in stature, slight in frame, and stooped a little in the 
shoidders. Nor was he blessed with ease of manner. He says 
himself that he was very timid, very awkward, especially when 
he appeared for the first time among strangers.^ This stifiFness, 
moreover, was not merely a question of manner; it was indica- 
tive of one of Brissot's most dominant characteristics. He did 
not know how to adapt himself to people, and as a consequence 
was always getting into quarrels and disputes.^ He adopted 
fixed standards of morality, and with a narrow puritanism went 
about applying them without tolerance and without sympathy. 
The single word which perhaps best describes his character is 
rigidity. 

But if Brissot was not altogether fitted for leadership, he was 
perhaps more so than the other Girondins. His prominence 
may in fact partially be accounted for by a process of elimina- 
tion. Condorcet was not emotional enough, could make no 
popular appeal; Vergniaud was too indolent, too much of a 
dreamer; Buzot was too headstrong; Gensonne, too aloof; 
Guadet lived too much in the present. Brissot, on the other 
hand, whatever his limitations, did possess certain qualities 
which made for success and leadership. For one thing he had 

^ Phillips, Biographical Anecdotes, ii, 20. 

2 Jacques Charles Bailleul (bom 1762, died 1843) was a French politician, 
member of the Convention, and an opponent of Robespierre and Danton. 
As a signer of the protest against the arrest of the Girondins, he was himself 
arrested and thrown into prison, but escaped execution. 

' Examen critique de Vouvrage posthume de Madame de Stael. 

* Memoires, i, 272. 

' Note his quarrels with his father, Swinton, Linguet, the father of Faimy 
Burney, Desforges, Morande, etc. 



GENERAL POLICY AND CHARACTER 427 

not only abounding faith in every cause to which he was de- 
voted, but also indefatigable industry in working for it him- 
self, and in making others work. While his executive ability 
may not have been of the highest order, he certainly was 
possessed of considerable skill. In short, the qualities which 
he showed in his early writings continued to be his striking 
characteristics and explain in large measure both his success 
and his limitations. His boundless ambition, his tremendous 
earnestness, and his never-failing optimism enabled him, in 
spite of his ingenuousness and rigidity, to inspire confidence. 
At the same time, the defects of his qualities account for his 
failure. His tremendous earnestness was accompanied by no 
saving sense of humor, his ambition led him into large plans of 
which he did not count the cost, and his optimism did not take 
accoimt of insurmountable obstacles. But though he failed be- 
cause he lacked the power to adapt himself to circumstances, 
to realize that it was "not a theory but a condition" by which 
France was confronted, to perceive at the supreme crisis that 
the war, which he himself had so large a part in bringing on, 
demanded immediate centralization in government; yet he 
stands out among his contemporaries for his high ideals and for 
a passion for liberty, which, as Garat says, was with him noth- 
ing short of a religion. "His eyes," to quote a modern writer, 
"were fixed on the map of Europe, while others saw only their 
club or their section." ^ In a word, while he embodies the 
spirit of the Revolution in his insistence on the liberty of the in- 
dividual and on the rights of man, he also foreshadows the new 
spirit of the nineteenth century — as interpreted by Mazzini 
in his stirring essay on Faith and the Future — in his belief in a 
larger brotherhood and in his faith in liberty, not for the indi- 
vidual alone, but for humanity. 

^ Aulard, Orateurs de la RSvolution, i, 224. 



APPENDIX 



APPENDIX A 

LETTERS BY AND TO BRISSOT 

Letter of Brissot to Jefferson 
(Jefferson Papers, 1st series, vol. 2, Library of Congress. Copy.) 

Chancellerie d'Oeleans 
ce 3 Janvier, 1787. 
Monsieur 

J 'ai I'honneur de vous adresser ci-joint les questions sur les fonds 
publics des Etats-Unis, dont je vous ai parle. Vous m'avez fait esperer 
ainsi que M. de Crevecoeur, que vous pourriez en vous adressant au 
treasury hoard du Congres, nous procurer une reponse complete & 
exacte sur tons les points. 

Cette reponse est singulierement importante pour fonder le credit 
des Etats-Unis & je ne doute point que mon digne ami Claviere avec 
son ami d 'Amsterdam ne parviennent a leur etablir un grand credit 
quand une fois ils auront des lumieres suffisantes sur leur situation. 
Vous voudrez done bien, Monsieur, mettre ces questions au nombre 
de vos depeches prochaines & me faire parvenir ou a M. Claviere la 
reponse aussitot qu 'elle sera dans vos mains. 

(Signed) Brissot de Warville. 

Questions sur lesfoncds publics des Etats-Unis. 

On suppose que le Congres des Etats-Unis d ' Amerique met quel- 
qu' importance a leur etablir un bon credit en Europe. lis ne peuvent 
y trouver que de grands avantages. La grande affaire des Americains 
est sans contredit es defrichements & ces defrichements demandent 
toujours plus de numeraire parcequ'ils le repandent sur une plus 
grande etendue de pays. II sera done avantageux aux Americains de 
donner a leur papiers un tel credit qu 'il puisse se placer dans les Etats 
de I'Europe ou I'argent est tres abondant & dans ceux oii le com- 
merce peut les admettre; car ces papiers pourroient venir chercher 
I'argent Europeen de plusieurs manieres, soit, directement & par 
voye d'emprunt, soit indirectement & en retour de fournitures 
Europeennes lorsque les productions Americaines ne suffiroient pas 
au moment meme pour les payer. La constitution republicaine est de 



432 APPENDIX 

toutes celle qui favorise le mieux un credit public; & sous ce point 
de vue les Etats-Unis ont droit au credit le plus etendu puisqu'il 
s 'appuie sur un sol immense, fertilise par la liberte. 

Mais dans ce moment soit par la malice de leurs ennemis, soit par 
les diflScultes qui s'elevent entre eux sur leurs dettes et leurs regu- 
lations interieures on ne peut pas encore faire naltre en Europe, en 
faveur des Americains une confiance generale; une infinite de faits, 
vrais ou faux ou mal representes, donnent des ombrages perpetuels; 
& font croire a beaucoup de gens que les Americains eux-memes ne 
sont pas encore persuades de I'importance de leux credit au dehors, 
on ne connoissent pas toute I'etendue des egards dus au maximes qui 
fondent & maintiennent le credit public, 

II seroit done tres necessaire d 'avoir tant de la part du Congres 
que de la Chambre de la tresorie, toutes les instructions necessaires 
pour se former des idees justes sur I'etat present des dettes Ameri- 
caines interieures et exterieures; sur la maniere dont elles sont con- 
siderees en general & en particulier, par la reunion des Etats & par 
chacun d'eux individuellement & pour juger s'il y a des dettes dont 
le remboursement soit considere sous des degres differens de certitude. 

Les fonds [stocks] Americains se devisent en effets continentaux & 
efifets particuliers a chaque etat. On desire sur les premiers d 'avoir 
leur liste, leur origine, la capitale, la forme, le terme de rembourse- 
ment s 'il y en a — par qu 'il est paye — quand, comment, ou quels 
sont ceux qui ont cours dans le commerce? s'il y a qui soient regus 
aux payements des taxes ou qui servent a ce payement? Est-il du 
des arr6rages & en quelle quantite? sur quel objet chaque emprunt ou 
fond continental est-il hypotheque? 

Les memes questions sont a repondre sur les fonds particuliers k, 
chaque etat & s 'il y en a de ceux-ci qui soient regus dans tons les etats, 
on desire d'en avoir la liste; comme aussi de connoitre ceux qui n'y 
sont pas regus & quelle en est la raison? On desireroit aussi d'avoir la 
liste des prix aux quels tons les differents effets Americains se negocient 
actuellement & la distinction de ceux dont le rembours prochain est 
le plus probable. 

Enfin cette question regarde plus particulierement le Congres, 

On demande quel interet le Congres accorderoit a des particuliers 
qui lui preteroient de I'argent a la condition de ne'n pouvoir 6tre 
rembourse qu'en fonds de terres appartenantes au Congres & dans le 
cours d'un certain nombre d'annees, que le Congres designeroit & qui 
ne devroit pas etre trop court. 

Si de pareils emprunts pouvoient avoir lieu ils exigeroient la deter- 
mination d'une certaine etendue de terres avantageusement situees 
pour le commerce & la culture, lesquelles seroient reservees pour 



APPENDIX 433 

acquitter ces emprunts, en determinant d'avance la maniere dont 
les porteurs de ces effets pourroient en prendre possession. 

Si une telle idee pent s'appliquer a un plan quelconque, d'une exe- 
cution sure, et facile & qu'il soit possible de lui donner une forme 
seduisante pour ceux qui cherchent a varier d'emploie de leur argent, 
il ne seroit pas impossible que cette maniere d'emprunter ne reussit 
en Europe surtout si le produit de tels emprunts servoient a acquitter 
des parties de dettes etrangeres, parce qu'alors ils donneroient lieu a 
des traites entre des particuliers & les etats memes a qui le Congres a 
des avances a rembourser, 

Mais il faudroit que les plans de tels emprunts arrivassent en Eu- 
rope avec des pleins pouvoirs aux ambassadeurs du Congres de traiter 
& meme de pouvoir admettre certaines modifications & y engager le 
Congres s'ils s'en presentoient de convenables aux preteurs sans etre 
nuisibles aux interets des Etats-Unis. 

Daniel Parker to Andrew Craigie 
(Craigie Papers, iii, 111. American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass.) 

Havee de Grace, June 2, 1788. 
My dear Sir: 

I have much pleasure in the present opportunity of introducing 
to your acquaintance Mons' Brissot de Warville, a French gentleman 
of the most respectable character and connections, his views in going 
to America are principally to obtain a perfect knowledge of the funds 
and the land in the western Territory. The representations that he 
will make to his friends in Europe will determine them respecting 
the purchase of the Funds, — as he is a literary man and his pursuits 
having been confined t© that line, he will pass unsuspected in America 
of having any design to buy the Funds. He will communicate with 
you freely on the subject, if he should recommend them to his con- 
nections they will make large purchases, all of which he proposes to 
confine entirely to you and Col. Duer. He is a gentleman that merits 
all confidence that you will give him all the information in your 
power [sic]. I shall leave it with you to settle with him such terms as 
you may think, proper, my great object has been to prevent a com- 
petition in the purchases. I have no doubt but I shall soon form an 
arrangement with M. de Warville's friend here for a large purchase of 
those funds in which you will be interested so that we shall be all 
united in one general interest. You will find M. de Warville to possess 
true republican sentiments and great knowledge in the afiFairs in 
Europe, of France in particular. 



434 APPENDIX 

I must pray you to give him all the attention and assistance in your 
power and to make acquainted [sic] with all your friends in congress. 
I am most faithfully your friend and ser't, 

(Signed) Dan. Parker. 

Andrew Craigie to Daniel Parker 
(Craigie Papers, i, 27. American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass. Copy.) 

New York, Dec. 3, 1788. 
My dear friend: 

This will be handed to you by our friend M. de Warville who will 
make it his first business to see you on his arrival to communicate the 
arrangements that have been made with him. Since my acquaintance 
with this Gentleman I have had such proofs of his amiable disposition 
and candor that I feel the most perfect confidence in his character. 
He has formed the best connections in this country, and is highly 
respected by our first Characters, and as he has acquired great 
knowledge of affairs here you will receive from him much useful 
information. 

I hope and believe you will receive full satisfaction from the ex- 
planations M. de Warville will give and with the power from Col. D. 
and myself you will be able to settle the arrangement to your mind. 

I am yours, 

(Signed) A. Craigie. 

Brissot de Warville to Colonel William Duer 

(Scioto Papers. New York Historical Society, New York City. Written in 

English.) 

Falmouth, Jan. 15, 1789. 
Dear Colonel: 

We are arrived here after a long, tedious, and stormy passage of 41 
days. I thought I could fly immediately to London, but the road is ob- 
structed by the vast quantity of snow so I am obliged to stay one day 
more here. Arriving here we have been told very strange news which 
shall certainly have a great influence over this world and bring some 
revolution. The insanity of the king of Great Brit., the death of 
Spain's, the declining authority of his cousin's of France, I believe 
that all these circumstances will pave the way to the prosperity of my 
good friend the American. Clouds are gathering here: they are or 
they shall be, at least, if you are wise, quickly over in your continent. 
Nothing is yet determined about the restrictions annexed to the 
regency. However, it is certain the Prince of Wales will be regent and 



APPENDIX 435 

of course it is very likely there will be a great change in the ministry. 
Pitt has reassumed a great popularity in defending the right of the 
people. Considering the effect of the revolution respecting America, 
I am inclined to believe that you '11 be more favorably treated by the 
future ministry who shall be consisting of men whose liberality of 
ideas and affection toward America are unquestionable. 

What I have picked up here respecting France is that the king has 
fixed the way of convocating and of organising the States-General — 
they must be very numerous. So much the better. The French comp- 
troller seems in distress. So much better too. We shall have a better 
competition for the debt. 

Adieu my dear friend. Rely upon it, I shall play the devil to 
despatch all our business as fast as possible and to send you intelli- 
gence. Tell Dr I thank him for his letter of credit, but I 've not had 
any occasion for it. My best compliments to him. Remember me to 
your ladies and depend on my everlasting friendship. 

(Signed) De Warville. 

Please to send the inclose [sic] to my brother-in-law, M. Dupont, 
wherever he may be. I '11 be obliged to D'. Craigie to mention my 
arrival with my compliments to Mr. Barett. 

Andrew Craigie to Brissot 

(Scioto Papers. New York Historical Society, New York City.) 

New York, 24 Jan. 1789. 
My dear Friend: 

It was a month or five weeks after your departure before you were 
suspected of having left America and it has caused considerable 
speculation among those whom you would suspect to be most curious 
on this occasion. I hope long before this you are happy with your 
friends in France and begin to think of returning to America. I am 
this day informed by a letter from my friend Porter at Alexandria 
that your brother is arrived at Norfolk in Virginia. I hope in a few 
days to have the pleasure of seeing him in N. Y. 

I now forward to you a power of attorney and copy of this deed of 
this land which I am interested in and wish you to have sold. This 
tract is about 140 miles from the city of New York and about the 
same distance from the city of Philadelphia within a quarter of a mile 
of the River Susquehannah [sic] where it is navigable for boats of 20 to 
30 and (sometimes) 50 barrels. The produce of the country sells nearly 
as high as in the city and the soil is good. A French crown or six livres 



436 APPENDIX 

per acre is the lowest price which the proprietors can receive. I 
suppose a much higher price may be procured for it, as I am informed 
that land in the vicinity of it has lately been sold for three and some 
for five dollars per acre. The proprietors will allow you one half of all 
you can get above the six livres, but in case it sells for only six livres 
per acre they will allow you a handsome compensation for your 
trouble. . . . 

Securities have risen since you left here. Notes bearing interest 
from the first Jan. 1788 have been sold for 5/3. 

Wishing you and yoiur plans all possible happiness and that some- 
time we may have the pleasure to see you again in this country, 

I remain, my dear Sir, 

Your affectionate friend, 

(Signed) Andrew Craigie. 

Our friend the Colonel is well and has lately written to you. 



Brissot to Colonel William Duer 

(Scioto Papers. New York Historical Society, New York City. Written in 

English.) 

Paris, 31 January, 1789. 

I've written to you, my excellent friend, from Falmouth. I hope 
you have received my letter. The roads were very bad so I was de- 
tained much longer I expected. Mr. Parker was not in London. I 
overreached him at Dover, we crossed the British Channel and went 
together to Paris; I availed myself from the length of the way and 
the leisure we had, to sound his disposition respecting our specula- 
tions and projects. I communicated to him the general plan of asso- 
ciation. His lecture seemed not to me operate forcibly on his mind. 
He told me he saw many diflSculties in forming such an association, in 
dividing the shares; moreover he had entered into many engagements 
he ought to fulfill. However he promised me to make an attempt. I 
reminded him that you had furnished him with information, that you 
had assisted him and of course you were entitled to some benefit. He 
answered me it was his interest to give you a share in the profits either 
of his own bargain or of the general association, were it conveyed into 
execution. 

We have since seen Mr. Van Staphorst in Paris. He seems not 
averse to an association and a partner to Mr. Stadninski I have met 
just now assured me the latter was in the same disposition. That 
association cannot be settled but in Amsterdam, where I hope to be 



APPENDIX 437 

with Mr. Parker in a fortnight. As to my friend Claviere, he is always 
satisfied with the solidity of the speculation and he'll come into. 
However there are many modifications to make in the plan. Rely on 
the equity of Mr. Claviere and on my zeal for your concern and this 
of Dr. Craigie. 

Respecting the transfer of the foreign debt, Mr. Parker confessed 
to me that some while ago he with Mr. Laurent de Couteux had given 
a plan to Mr. Necker to get that transfer and he hoped to succeed. 
He did not give to me any details about it. I told him that there was 
another plan for redeeming that debt, formed by Mr. Claviere, ap- 
proved by you, from which immense advantages might derive to the 
Society which should carry it into execution, that we were determined 
to apply to the French court, but that we might suspend our own 
application, on the condition that, if Mr. Parker obtained the transfer 
from the ministry, he should enter into a general association with us 
and on equal footing, that he should bind himself in writing. He 
agreed, but as the consent of Mr. Laurent de Couteux is required, we 
are to settle with him that point. The minister, probably on account 
of his various and pressing affairs, has not given any answer. How- 
ever the circumstances seem favorable to get the transfer. 

As to the loan Mr. P. told me that it would not proceed but in Hol- 
land, that he did not see any difficulty to succeed if, chiefly, the new 
congress looked determined to appropriate to the payment of the 
interest a part of the impost he is to raise. 

We have not yet conferred about the Illinois lands, the other mat- 
ters being much more important, so any information about the prog- 
ress is postponed till the next letter. 

I come now to the purchase of the $109350 certificates. Very likely 
you are already acquainted by Mr. Seton and Dr. Craigie that the 
bills have not been aceepted, with the motives of the refusal, and the 
bond of the payment. I tried everything in my power to have them 
accepted from my friend who was first inclined to accept them. But 
after considering the matter he told me: Suppose I pay those bills, 
suppose you empower to transfer in my name that debt, the power 
going to America may be lost, the certificate coming back may be 
lost; Mr. Seton may die. Many difficulties may arise about the trans- 
fer in my name. In those circumstances my property shall be uncer- 
tain and not at my disposal for a long while and meanwhile I shall be 
deprived from 6000 Stirling at a time when the money is so scarce 
and so valuable. Moreover I cannot sell those funds without having 
the certificate in my name, without being able to transfer it imme- 
diately to the purchaser. It therefore seems necessary that I get it 
previous to accepting. I shall bind myself to pay at his reception. 



438 APPENDIX 

So your friends in America cannot have any doubts about the pay- 
ment since you have paid them in cash at least 5% of the purchase. 

I could not make any reply to those forcible argimients and so I 
acceded to the plan proposed by Mr. Claviere stated in the letter I've 
sent to Messrs. Seton and Craigie. I was chiefly inclined to adopt it, 
considering that Mr. Seton was not entitled to require any damage, 
having not advanced any money, the bills not being protested, and 
the payment being ascertained. So my dear friend send as fast as 
possible the transfer in the name of Mr. Claviere and the bills shall 
be paid immediately. . . . (The next paragraph is illegible on ac- 
count of a tear in the paper.) 

Don't miss any occasion to write to me. The money is scarce here, 
high paid, credit stagnant, tho' the writs for the General states are 
despatching. Believe me for life your good friend. 

(Signed) Brissot de Warville. 

Chez M. CiAviiiRE. H6tkl la 

COMPAGNIE D'ASStTRANCE. RuE 

DE Richelieu. 

P.S. Please to present your ladies with my humble respects, my 
compliments to Dr. Craigie and you'll oblige me to forward that 
letter to Mr. Dupont whose I don't know the direction. 



Brissot to Colonel William Duer 

(Scioto Papers. New York Historical Society, New York City. Written in 

English.) 

Pakis, April 28, 1789. 
Dear Friend: — 

I am quite amazed not to have received any line from you since I 
have left America. Have you forgotten one of your best friends. I am 
waiting with impatience for your answer about the transfer of the 
certificates. 

I see very often here Parker and Haskell. No confidence can be 
put in Parker. What is certain is this, that he looks for monopolizing 
the sale of American funds in Europe; and he looks very cool about 
sharing the profits with his friends in America. He has played so 
many tricks here that he has created a diffidence about the American 
funds. There is very little chance for Haskell to sell now his certifi- 
cates here, but probably he'll find a market in Holland. That requires 
only some time. I have not any doubt that when the disturbances 
shall be settled here, the debt funded and the national credit restored, 
it will be possible to bring some moneyed people in a speculation upon 



APPENDIX 439 

your funds and lands. But now it is quite impracticable. We must 
then have patience for putting in execution the schemes we have 
planned. On this very circumstance I '11 spend the whole year here. 

I suppose now that Claviere's transfer is coming here. We'll do the 
best for disposing of it. The elections are going very briskly. I've 
failed to be elected in my own country and they talk of me for being a 
representative for Paris. Shall I succeed, God knows, but I don't 
care very much. Though I believe there will be a good constitution, 
it shall be by far inferior to yours. I do beseech you my friend write 
me some time about the progress of your new government and believe 
me forever your everlasting friend, 

(Signed) Brissot de Warville. 

No. 1 Gretbt. 

G. Martin a Monsieur Brissot 

(Affaires Etrangeres. 31 Decembre, 1792. Angleterre — 29 — Supplement f". 

340. Original.) 
Affaires secretes. 

COMPATRIOTE : — 

Je m'empresse de vous faire part d'un avis que j 'ai regu il y a quel- 
ques heureset sur lequel vous pouves [sic] compter, I'ayant eu d'une 
personne en qui j'ai la plus grande confiance, qui la merite par des 
preuves incontestables que j 'en ai cue [sic] et qui a luimeme chiffre la 
piece dont je vais vous parler. Notre ami commun le connoit et saura 
qui je veux dire. Cette piece n'est rien moins qu'une declaration et 
requisition envoyee d'ici aux trois Cours de Berlin, Vienne et Peters- 
bourg, — par lesquelles apres leur avoir temoigne I'accord le plus com- 
plet sur leurs idees, leurs vues et leurs projets au sujet de la France, 
dont il est de la derniere importance d 'arreter les progres d 'une ma- 
niere effective, les sollicite respectivement d 'envoyer les instructions et 
les pouvoirs les plus amples a leurs ambassadeurs ou envoyes ici, 
et en outre de faire passer a Londres sans perdre de terns un Militaire 
Entendu afin de concerter en commun les operations convenables en 
les assurant qu'aussitot qu'on aura pris les mesures definitives et 
f rappe les premiers coups, il n 'y aura aucune difficulte sur les subsides, 
puisqu'on est determine a agir de la maniere la plus vigoureuse, et 
qu 'on en sent 1 'absolue necessite. En attendant toutes les Puissances 
doivent ne negliger aucun moyen de donner a leurs forces toute 
I'extension possible, en recrutements, augmentation, approvisionne- 
ments, etc., et la Russie doit agir de maniere a pouvoir fournir un 
corps de soixante mille hommes s'il est juge necessaire, en le rappro- 
chant autant qu 'il lui sera possible, et que sa situation en Pologne lui 



440 APPENDIX 

facilitera pour une partie, et I'autre s'avancant au dehors de la Bal- 
tique, pour etre transportee par mer et escortee par une flotte angloise, 
qui ne trouvera aucune opposition dans les mers du Nord. Cette note 
repond aux sollicitations de ces Puissances et a la connoissance 
qu 'elles avoient donne de 1 'etat de leurs finances qu 'elles representent 
comme un peu epuisees, dans un moment ou la prudence les empeche 
d'ajouter ouvertement de nouvelles taxes. Toute mesure ulterieure 
est renvoyee a des moments plus favorables, la seule chose dont on 
doive et puisse s'occuper c'est d'ecraser I'ennemi commun, qui n'a 
d 'autre ressource que de porter le trouble et le desordre partout, sans 
s 'embarrasser des consequences, puisque leur banqueroute est in- 
evitable et des efforts bien concertes I'ameneront immediatement, et 
mettront leurs ennemis interieurs en etat de se declarer sans crainte, 
et avec succes, puisqu 'on a raison de croire par une infinite de com- 
munications sures qu 'ils sont beaucoup plus nombreux qu 'on ne pense 
en general. II y a ensuite une infinite d'autres details et de pieces 
auxquelles on renvoye et on finit en demandant les mesures les plus 
promptes, et en observant qu'il ne convient pas de vouloir paroitre 
se meler des affaires interieures, du moins en commengant, que cela 
convient surtout a ce pays, ou il importe de menager 1 'opinion pub- 
lique, dont on est assure et qu 'il ne faut pas aliener — que tout a con- 
tribue dernierement a la rendre favorable, et que la Catastrophe de 
Louis XVI a laquelle on s 'attend et qu'on regarde meme comme 
assuree achevera d 'exalter les esprits et de les porter aux mesures les 
plus energiques, que L'Angleterre en attendant fera les preparatifs 
les plus etendus, et tout ce qui dependra d 'elle pour assurer le succes 
d'une entreprise, que I'interet de I'humanite rend indispensable. 
On a fait partir deux paquebots avec les memes depeches 1 'un pour 
la Hollande et 1 'autre pour Hambourg, et on a envoye en meme tems 
des depeches aux Cours de Lisbonne, de Madrid et de Turin. 

L'importance de cette Communication me fait courir tous les 
risques pour vous la faire parvenir, faites en 1 'usage que vous croires 
le plus convenable en evitant de me compromettre. Je desire beau- 
coup qu'on use de clemence envers le Roi, quand la Justice et 
I'humanite ne I'exigeroit pas, la politique la plus saine devroit y 
determiner, et la Convention doit se prononcer, et ne pas craindre les 
Maratistes et leurs semblables. Je suis persuade quelle sera soutenue 
par les departements — il seroit grand (temps?) de lui bannir et de 
le faire transp>orter en Angleterre, en gardant son fils pour otage, 
qu 'auroit on a craindre, il est nul par luimeme, et n 'aura jamais la confi- 
ance des Emigrants et de ceux qui les soutiennent. Apres cette mesure 
qui auroit 1 'effet le plus grand sur cette nation il en est une autre sur 
laquelle je ne hesiterois pas, et qui seroit de se rendre maitre de la 



APPENDIX 441 

Hollande. Comme je pense qu'il ne seroit pas difficile, en fesant [sic] 
naitre de ces occasions qui ne manquent jamais, et en etant prepare 
a profiter des premieres hostilites pour s'avancer. Cette mesure est 
liardie, mais elle est necessaire, et si on ne s'y decide pas, je crains 
bien qu'on ne s'en repente quelque jour, la saison pourra meme 
favoriser un pareil dessein, car on doit s'attendre a de fortes gelees 
cette annee, qui est la cinquieme depuis que nous n 'en avons pas eu 
de considerables. II y va du salut de I'Empire, du bonheur du monde, 
et dans de grands dangers, il faut de grandes mesures. S 'il est quelque 
chose en quoi je puisse etre utile, comptes toujours sur moi. Bien 
des choses a notre ami commun, j 'enverrai le manteau et la chaine de 
montre dans deux on trois jours. Montres [sic] lui cette lettre, il vous 
en dira son avis. Tout a vous. 

G. Mabtin. 

31 Decembre. 

Noel part aujourd'hui pour la Haye. H faut trouver quelqu 'autre 
moyen de me faire parvenir surement vos lettres, ce qui me paroit 
difficile, mais vous pourries [sic] les adresser a quelqu 'un pour moi et 
me le faire sgavoir par la poste a qui. 



442 APPENDIX 



APPENDIX B 

LIST OF MEMBERS OF THE SOCIfiTE DES AMIS 
DES NOIRS 

The following list of members of the Societe des Amis des Nairs is 
found at the Archives Nationales, AD. xviii, C 115, at Paris. The 
paper has neither date nor signature, but from the epithet applied to 
Lameth^ it must have been as late as 1790, and from the epithets 
applied to Mirabeau and Robespierre, the author was probably an 
anti-revolutionist. 

Tableau des Memhres de la Societe des Amis des Nairs 

1. Brissot de Warville, 

rue d'Amboise, no. 10. 

2. E. Claviere, administrateur de la Compagnie royale d 'Assurance 
sur la vie, 

rue d'Amboise, no. 10. 

3. Le Marquis de Beaupoil Saint-Aulaire au Temple. 

4. Brack, Directeur general des Traites, 

rue de Grammont, no. 2. 

5. A. S. Cerisier, 

en Bourbonais. 

6. Duchesnay, Censeur royal, 

rue des Bernardins, no. 37. 

7. Le Marquis de Valady, c'est lui qui a fait revolter le regiment 

des gardes frangoises, a Londres. 

8. Dufossey de Breban, Directeur de la Regie generale 

rue de Grammont, no. 19. 

9. De Bourge, 

rue des Filles du Calvaire, no. 16. 

10. Madame la Marquise de Baussans, 

Place Royale. 

11. J. J. Claviere, Negociant (rue Coq-heron) au Parlement d'An- 
gleterre. 

12. Roman, Negociant rue Coq-heron au Parlement d'Angleterre. 

13. De Montcloux, fils, Fermier General, 

rue S. Honore, no. 341. 

^ Supplement aux procSs-verbal Colonies, tome i, Traite des n^gres, parti n. 



APPENDIX 443 

14. De Montcloux de la Villeneuve, Conseiller a la Cour des Aides, 

rue S. Honore, no. 341. 

15. Madame Poivre, 

rue Feydeau, no. 22. 

16. De Trudaine, Conseiller au Parlement, 

rue des Francs Bourgeois, no. 39. 

17. De Trudaine de la Sabliere, Conseiller au Parlement, 

rue des Francs Bourgeois, no. 39. 

18. Malartic de Fonda, Maitre de Requetes, 

passage des Petits-Peres, no. 7. 

19. Le Roi de Petitval, Regisseur general, 

passage des Petits-Peres, no. 7. 

20. L'Abbe Colin, 

au Presbytere de S. Eustache. 

21. Du Rovray, 

en Irlande. 

22. Short, Secretaire de 1 ' Ambassade des fitats-Unis d 'Amerique, 

pres la grille de Chatllot. 

23. De Pilles, ancien Procureur des Comptes, 

rue de Grammont, no. 19. 

24. Le Marquis de Condorcet, Secretaire perpetuel de I'Academie 
des Sciences. Membre de I'Academie Frangoise, 

hotel de la Monnoie. 

25. Charton de la Terriere, 

en Amerique. 

26. Kornman, 

rue Careme. 

27. Blot, Controleur de la marque d 'or, 

a Lyon. 

28. Esmangard, filsj Conseiller au Parlement, 

rue des Capucins, no. 22. 

29. Dieres, Conseiller a la Cour des Aides, 

rue Jacob. 

30. Des Faucherets, 

rue de Paradis. 

31. Gramagnac, Docteur en Medicine, 

hotel de Lussan, rue Croix des Petits-Champs. 

32. Lanthenas, Docteur en Medicine, 

rue Thevenot, no. 31. 

33. Du Vaucel, Fermier General, 

rue neuve des Mathurins, no. 1. 

34. Gallois, Avocat au Parlement, 

rue des Petits Augustins, no. 24. 



444 APPENDIX 

35. Le Marquis de Mons, 

rue neuve des Petits-Champs, no. 26. 

36. L'Abbe Guyot, Prevot de S. Martin de Tours, 

rue Traversiere, no. 35. 

37. Pigot, 

a Geneve. 

38. Le Baron de Dietrick, 

rue Poissoniere. 

39. Lavoisier, Fermier General, 

a 1 'Arsenal. 

40. Bergerot, Directeur des Fermes, 

hotel des Fermes. 

41. Biderman, Negociant, 

a Bruxelles. 

42. De Pastoret, Maltre des Requites, 

rue des Capucines, no. 74. 

43. Cottin, fils, Banquier, 

Chausse d Antin, no. 8. 

44. D Audignac, Directeur de la Regie generale, 

rue de Choiseul. 

45. Le Comte de la Cepede, 

au Jardin du Roi. 

46. Munier de Montengis, 

a 1 'hotel Royal des Invalides. 

47. Madame Claviere, 

rue d'Amboise, no. 10. 

48. Le Chevalier de Boufflers, 

hotel de Rohan, rue de Varenne. 

49. Gougenot, Reeeveur general de la Regie generale, 

rue de Choiseul. 

50. Petry, Directeur des Fermes, 

hotel de Longueville, rue S. Nicaise. 

51. De Saint- Alphonse, Fermier General, 

rue S. Honore no. 423. 

52. Fortin, 

rue de Choiseul. 

53. Henry, Avocat au Parlement, 

rue Saint-Jean-de-Beauvais. 

54. Le Prince Emmanuel de Salm, 

rue de Crenelle, faubourg S. Germain, no. 231. 

55. Duport, Conseiller au Parlement, 

rue du Grand-Chantier, hotel du Port-frais, no. 2. 

56. Segretier. 



APPENDIX 445 

57. Soufflot, Inspecteur des Batimens de Sainte-Genevieve, 

a Sainte-Genevieve. 

58. Agasse de Cresne, 

rue Pavee Saint-Andre-des-Arts, no. 12. 

59. Servat, Agent de la ville de Bourdeaux, 

boulevart Montmorency, vis-a-vis le Pavilion. 

60. Crohare, 

rue de la comedie frangoise, au coin de la rue des Cordeliers. 

61. Le Comte de Valence, 

rue Chausee d'Antin, no. 170. 
61.^ Hocquart de Tremilly, Avocat General de la Cour des Aides, 
rue neuve des Petits-Champs, no. 71. 

62. Le Comte Charles de Lameth, dit le General des Annonciades,* 
et de la mflice bourgeoise de Pointoise, 

cul-de-sac-Notre-Dame-des-Champs. 

63. Le Chevalier Alexandre de Lameth, 

meme demeure. 

64. Le Chevalier Theodore de Lameth, 

meme demeure. 

65. Le Marquis du Chatelet, 

hotel de Brissac, quai des Theatins. 

66. Le Comte de Rochechouart, 

rue de Crenelle, faubourg S. Germain, no. 99. 

67. MoUiens, premier Commis des Finances, 

rue de la Michaudiere. 

68. Bergon, premier Commis des Finances, 

rue de la Michaudiere. 

69. De Sannois, Fermier General, 

hotel des Fermes. 

70. Le Vicomte de 'Ricey, 

rue de . 

71. Benoit de Lamothe, Sous-chef de la comptabilite de la Regie 
generale, 

rue neuve Saint-Eustache, no. 21. 

72. Leroy de Camilly, Payeur des Rentes, 

rue S. Marc, no. 23. 

^ The mistake here is in the original numbering. There are two 61's. 

^ Lameth, as member of the Comit& des Recherches to which he was elected 
in 1720, was obHged to make a visit by night to the convent of the Annonciades 
to arrest M. de Barentin, an accused minister who had taken refuge there. 
This visit was made the subject of ridicule by the royalists and furnished the 
occasion for a comic poem beginning, — 

" Je chante ce heros de milice bourgeoise, 
Orateur d Paris, gineral a Pontoise." 



446 APPENDIX 

73. Dupleix de Mezy, Conseiller au Parlement, 

rue des petites Ecuries du Roi. 

74. Vallou de Villeneuve, Sous-chef de la Regie generale, 

rue S. Joseph. 

75. Le Marquis de la Feuillade, 

rue des Marais. 

76. De Moulan, Receveur general des Finances, 

rue de Clichy. 

77. Le Marquis de S. Lambert. 

78. De Vayne. 

79. Del'Etang. 

80. Savalette de Lange. 

81. Le Marquis de Pampelune. 

82. Desissarts. 

83. L'Abbe Sieyes, le Depute. 

84. L 'Abbe Lageare. 

85. Doizan, fils du Fermier general. 

86. De BouUongne. 

87. Le Sage. 

88. Le Roy. 

89. L'Abbe Coulon. 

90. Gougenot de Croissy. 

91. De Missy. 

92. Bertrand des Brus. 

93. Lescallier. 

94. Marquise de Condorcet. 

95. My-lord Daer. 

96. L'Abbe Noel. 

97. Le Baron de Buest. 

98. Messent. 

99. L'Abbe Louis. 

Associes Etr angers 

1. L'Abbe Piatoli, 

boulevard de Richelieu, chez Madame la Princesse Lubor- 
miska. 

2. Clarkson, negociant, 

a Dublin. 

3. Siodier, negociant, 

a Geneve. 

4. Dumont, 

a Londres. 

5. Mazzey. 



APPENDIX 447 

AssociSs correspondans regnicoles. 

1. De Souligne, Directeur des Fermes, 

a Lyon. 

2. De Suilly, Gentilhomme, 

a Orleans. 

3. Petion de Ville neuve, Avocat, 

a Chartes. 

4. D'Autroche (Cher), 

a Orleans. 

5. Le Marquis de Gronchy, 

a Meulan. 

6. M. le Due d'AiguIllon. 

. 7. M. le Comte de Mirabeau, dit le Flambeau de la Provence, 
comme Robespierre la Chandelle d' Arras. ^ 
8. M. Cottin, Depute de Nantes. 

' According to the Dictionnaire Larousse the nickname Chandelle d' Arras 
was applied to Robespierre by the Actes des Apotres, a royalist journal which 
ridiculed him as a provincial lawyer lost among distinguished orators. The 
Flambeau de la Province probably came from the same source. 



448 APPENDIX 



APPENDIX C 

ACCUSATION AGAINST BRISSOT IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE COLONIES 

{Archives Nationales. AA 54, 1509. 2, no. 46.) 
Notices sur Brissot 

Brissot a ete 1 'agent de 1 'engleterre [sic] pour ruiner les Colonies 
Fran^aises. 

Brissot connoissoit le genie des hommes de couleur et 1 'esprit public 
des colonies, il [sic] sgavoit que pour agiter les Colonies, il suffisoit de 
metre [sic] en mouvement les passions de ces deux classes d 'hommes 
que 1 'encien [sic] regime avoit places a de grandes distances. C 'est 
pour cela que le 15 fevrier 1790. No. CXCI il applaudit a Joly de 
Fleury qui demanda a la Commune de Paris qu 'elle sollicitoit aupr^s 
de I'assemblee Constituante L 'admission des hommes de Couleur 
dans son sein. Brissot appuya cette petition a la Commune dont il 
etoit membre. 

Brissot dit dans son No. 233, 29, Mars., 1790, que ne pas admetre 
les deputes des hommes de couleur au sein de I'assemblee Constitu- 
ante: C'est preparer la mine de la Colonic. 

Dans son No. 594, 25 Mars 1791. Brissot dit que I'assemblee na- 
tionale ne doit pas balancer de prefferer [sic] aux blancs les hommes 
de Couleur dont les vertus fairont [sic] un jour la regeneration et la 
prosperite des Colonies. 

Dans son No. 664, 3, Juin 1791, il se pleint [sic] de ce que le Comite 
Colonial n'a pas provoque de I'assemblee nationale le decret d 'ad- 
mission des deputes des hommes de couleur. 

Dans son No. 816, Novembre 4, 1791, sachant que les Commercans 
du Havre preparaient des secours pour S[ain]t Domingue; il les 
accuse de n'y porter des secours que pour aider les blancs a opprimer 
les hommes de couleur. 

Dans son No. 820. Novembre 8, 1791, il dit que les details donnes 
sur I'assemblee Coloniale de S[ain]t Domingue de la revolte des es- 
claves ne sont que mensonge. il dit que cette revolte n'est qu'un 
pretexte pour appeller les Anglois au Cap. 

Dans son No. 834, 22, Novembre 1791, il dit que les desordres de 
Saint Domingue sont une manoeuvre de cette Colonie pour se rendre 
independante. II les attribue encore a la cruaute des blancs envers 
leurs esclaves. 



APPENDIX 449 

Dans son No. 850. 8. Decembre 1791 — il dit que les blancs ont 
revolte leurs negres pour se rendre independante et ne pas payer leurs 
dettes. 

Dans son No. 208 — Mars 4, 1791 — il accuse I'assemblee provin- 
ciale du Nord de S[ain]t Domingue de vouloir se rendre independante. 

Dans son No. 557, 16 — Fevrier 1791 — il dit si les colons enten- 
dent bien leurs inter^ts ils se soumetront quoique certainement on 
ait comis une injustice a n 'entendre pas leurs representans: maiss'ils 
sont bons frangais, ils oublieront cette injustice. 

Dans son No. 935 — Mars. 2, — 1791, il dit que les mulatres n'ont 
lasse les municipalites que parcequ 'elles etoient le repaire de 1 'aris- 
tocratic. 

Dans son No. 955, Mars 22, 1792, il attenne le tableau des des- 
ordres de St. Domingue, il en accuse 1 'orgueil des blancs, leur obstina- 
tion a ne pas accorder 1 'activite politique aux hommes de couleur, il 
en accuse enfin 1 'assemblee Coloniale. 

Dans son No. 961, 28. Mars 1792, il dit que la Province du Nord 
de S[ain]t Domingue est perdue par I'obstination de I'assemblee 
Coloniale a restituer aux hommes de couleur 1 'activite politique. 

Dans son No. 967, 1 Avril 1792, il dit on remplit les papiers publics 
de funestes nouvelles sur la situation de S[ain]t Dominque. Nous ne 
devons cesser de metre [sic] le public en garde contre les mensonges 
dont la france est imbue. On sgait que nos princes les Colons ont 
toujours dans leur poche quelques lettres de commende, [sic] juste- 
ment arrivant du Cap et bonnes on meauvais [sic] suivant le besoin. 

Dans son No. 979, 15 Avril 1792, il dit que le decret du 15 May 
n'est pas la cause des malheurs de S[ain]t Domingue mais bien 
1 'orgueil des blancs. 

Dans son No. 1022, 26 May, 1792, il fait I'apologie de Blanchelande 
et autres chefs des Conspirateurs et une diatribe attroce [sic] contre 
1 'ass[emblee] Coloniale. 

Dans son No. 1022, 28 Mars 1792, il applaudit a une lettre de 
S[ain]t Domingue qui annonce la coalition de 15000 hommes tant 
blancs que mulatres qui marchent contre le Ville du Port au Prince, 
il applaudit encor [sic] a I'incendie de I'habitation du patriote 
borel. [sic] 

Dans son No. 1075, 20, Juillet, 1792 — il rapporte une lettre qu'il 
dit venir de S[ain]t Domingue qui fait 1 'apologie de Blanchelande et 
autres contre revolutionaires pendant qu 'elle distille le venim sur les 
patriotes. 

Dans son No. 1096, 10. Aout, 1792, il fait I'^loge de la loi du 4 
Avril 1792 — qui suivant lui pouroit seule rammener [sic] I'ordre k 
S[ain]t Domingue. 



450 APPENDIX 

Dans son No. 1112 — 26, Aout 1792, il fait I'eloge de Blanchelande 
et des autres chefs de la centre revolution. 

Dans son No, 1187, 9, Novembre 1792, il fait I'apologie de Blanche- 
lande. 

Dans son No. 1273, 5 Fevrier 1790, il accuse les petits blancs d 'avoir 
egorge et pille les maisons du Cap. 

Dans son No. 233, 29, May 1790, il insere son discours sur la 
necessite d 'etablir a Paris une societe pour 1 'abolition de la Traite. 

Dans son No. 327, Juillet, 10, 1790, il pretent [sic] qu'on peut ecrire 
sur les negres sans aucun danger parce-qu 'il[s] ne savent n 'ont [sic] 
pas le terns de lire. 

Dans son No. 1026, 1*' Juin 1792, il dit que les malheurs de S[ain]t 
Domingue frappent 1 'Angleterre bien plus que la france. 

Dans son No. 1263, 26, Janvier 1793, il dit que les Colons blancs se 
reffugient dans la nouvelle engleterre [sic] dont ils ne peuvent manquer 
de corrompre les moeurs en y emmenant leurs fantaisies et leurs 
esclaves. 

Dans son No. 1263, 26, Janvier 1793, il nie que I'assemblee Co- 
loniale ait le droit que lui ont attribue I'assemblee Constituante et 
celle [sic] legislative celui de prononcer sur le sort des esclaves. 

Dans son No. 1270, fevrier 2, 1793, il insere un pamphlet qu'il dit 
dtre de Villete. Ce pamphlet adresse a la Convent[ion] Nationale dit 
donnes a vos negres la liberte: vous couvrires [sic] la terre de com- 
batans, qui sgauront la deffendre [sic] il ne vous en coutera qu 'un 
decret. 

Le 27. Octobre 1792, Brissot dit que — Talien a tort de proposer 
I'envoy de secours a S[ain]t Domingue il dit que Talien ignore que 
les Espagnols n'ont dans cette contree que 3000. hommes pendant 
que la patrie frangaise est deffendue par dix mille hommes de troupes 
reglees et vingt mille mulatres. 

Dans son No. 1001, 10. May — 1792, il dit qu'il n'existe aucune 
faction republicaine; que c'est un phantome [sic] que les moderes ont 
cree pour aigrir les patriotes. [The following sentence is illegible.] 

Dans son No. 1209, 27. Novembre 1792, il dit que la Convention 
doit sevir contre la rebellion de 1 'ass[emblee] Colo[niale] qui a en- 
voye en france trois Commiss[aires] pour presenter a la sanction un 
decret sur I'esclavage, 

Affaire de sa lettre a la Constitua[nte] 

1 'affaire de Geng*. D. 



APPENDIX 



451 



APPENDIX D 

BRISSOT'S ELECTION TO THE LEGISLATIVE 
ASSEMBLY 

The following table explains Brissot's struggle for election as a 
deputy from the department of the Seine to the Legislative Assembly. 
It shows his successive defeats, the names of those who defeated him, 
and his final victory. It will be noted that the election had to be by 
the absolute majority of the electors. For the details of the struggle 
see Chavaray, AssembUe Eledorale de Paris, 1791-92, pp. 137-227. 



Deputy. 


Date. 


Ballot. 


Total. 


Brissot. 


Candidate Chosen. 


First 


iSept. 


First 


802 


10 






1 


<( 


Second 


821 


2 


Garran de Coulon 


Second 
Third 


2 
3 


« 


First 
First 


687 
739 


130 
163 


Lacepede 




3 


« 


Second 


814 


179 


Pastoret 


Fourth 


4 


« 


First 


709 


153 






4 


« 


Second 


725 


138 


Cerutti 


Fifth 


5 


« 


First 


698 


100 




Sixth 


5 
5 


« 
« 


Second 
First 


799 
733 


82 
112 


Beauvais de Preau 


Seventh 


6 
6 


« 


Second 
First 


609 
756 


32 
33 


Bigot de Preameneu 




6 


« 


Second 


773 


18 




Eighth 


6 

7 


« 
« 


Third 

First 


694 

722 



15 


Gouvion 


Ninth 


7 
7 


<( 


Second 
First 


759 
663 


9 
142 


Broussonet 




9 


« 


Second 


662 


198 




Tenth 


9 
9 


« 
« 


Third 
First 


752 
719 


305 
180 


Crette de Palud 




9 


« 


Second 


644 


168 




Eleventh 


10 
10 


« 
« 


Third 
First 


769 
697 


263 


Gorguereau 


* 


12 


« 


•Second 


652 


137 






13 


<< 


Second 


653 


256 




Twelfth 


13 
13 


« 
<< 


Third 
First 


757 

725 


352 
254 


Thorillon 




14 


({ 


Second 


692 


302 






14 


" 


Third 


641 


409 


Brissot 



Annulled. 



452 APPENDIX 



APPENDIX E 

LETTER RELATING TO CONNECTION OF BRISSOT 
WITH WAR WITH ENGLAND 

(Affaires fitrangeres. Le 19. Septembre I'an 1*'. de I'egalite. Angleterre — 582. 

fo. 182. Original. Paris.) 
l^re division. 

Jullienfils au Ministre des Affaires ^tr anger es 

Paris — ce 19. T^re I'an !«' de I'egalite. 
Monsieur, 

Je regois dans ce moment une lettre d 'Angleterre qui me prouve 
que la mesure que je vous ai proposee et qu 'ont appuyee M[essieu]rs 
Brissot et Condorcet est plus que jamais urgente et necessaire. On 
intercepte presque tons les paquets venant de f ranee, e'est a dire 
qu 'on veut epaissir le bandeau jette sur les yeux du peuple Anglais et 
le conduire ensuite plus aizement a cette guerre qu'il ne pourroit 
jamais consentir s'il etait eclaire. Sur I'invitation de M[onsieur] 
Brissot et d'un de mes amis M[onsieur] Eury a qui vous aviez paru 
temoigner le desir de me voir pour que j 'achevasse de vous donner 
les renseignements que j 'avois pu prendre, je me suis presente plusieurs 
fois chez vous, — sans jamais pouvoir vous parler, les occupations 
multipliees de votre place me font assez sentir 1 'impossibilite oil vous 
etes de recevoir tons ceux qui s 'adressent a vous. Cependant le motif 
qui m'a conduit me parait ainsi qu'a tons ceux a qui je I'ai com- 
munique d 'une grande importance. Quel a ete mon etonnement d 'en- 
tendre dire a I'un de vos secretaires k qui vous comptiez differer 
jusqu'apres les premieres operations de la convention nationale la 
mesure proposee. Ce seroit perdre absolument I'effet qu'on pent en 
attendre. Je suis. Monsieur, dans le langage de la liberte et de 
1 'egalite qui ne sauroit etre etranger au ministre de Citoyens egaux 
et libres. 

Votre Concitoyen, frere et ami, 

JVIAJIEN fils. 

Et au Verso: Au Ministre des Affaires fitrangeres, a Paris. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 

I. MANUSCRIPT MATERIAL 

The papers of Brissot, after the death of Madame Brissot, re- 
mained in the hands of their son Anacharsis. After some years he 
confided them to the publisher Ladvocat, who, in turn, passed them 
on to M. Montrol, who used them as the basis for his publication of 
the memoirs of Brissot. The "portfolio," as this collection of papers 
is called, must certainly have contained correspondence and other 
material not utilized in the memoirs, but what has become of these 
manuscripts is a matter of uncertainty. It seems that they were in 
1865 in the possession of the son of M. Montrol, who was unwilling 
to relinquish them. 

Apart from this portfolio Anacharsis probably kept a portion of the 
correspondence for himself. At all events, his widow appears to have 
given some of the letters to M. Faugere, copies of which are to be 
found among the Roland papers at the Bibliotheque Nationale, at 
Paris; the widow of Brissot's grandson also possesses a part of the 
family correspondence, and there exist numerous other letters in 
different places. All of this scattered correspondence, which includes 
letters written by various members of his own and his wife's family, 
together with a number of documents pertaining to the arrest and trial 
of Brissot, has been collected and published by M. Perroud in his recent 
edition of the Correspondance et Papier s de Brissot, but the "portfolio " 
is still undiscovered. The Brissot manuscripts, then, are for the most 
part either included ip the Correspondance or are not accessible. 

There is one exception, however. Since the publication of the 
Correspondance there has been discovered among the Craigie Papers 
in the collection of the American Antiquarian Society at Worcester, 
Massachusetts, and among the Scioto Papers in the collection of the 
New York Historical Society, a considerable collection of letters to 
and from Brissot and concerning him, dealing chiefly with his relations 
with American speculators. Possibly these letters may have some 
connection with the sixty-five letters to Brissot by Americans an- 
nounced in the Charavay Catalogue of 1858. A list of the letters in 
this recently discovered material and a list of other manuscript 
sources not contained in M. Perroud's collection are given below. ^ 

^ See the tltude critique by M. Perroud, prefixed to his edition of Brissot's 
memoirs, xiv; also the Correspondance, avertissement, 450-57. 



456 BIBLIOGRAPHY 



A. Archives Nationales (Paris) 

1. In carton " Trihunaux rSvolutionnaires — 
affaire des Girondins." {W 292, dossier 204) 

Lettre des commissaires et des colons de Saint Domingue au Comit6 
de surete generale, 26 septembre, 1793. Original signe. A. N., W 292, 
no. 204 (2^ partie), piece 68; Tuetey, viii, 3335. 

A denunciation of Brissot as responsible for the troubles in Santo Do- 
mingo and also of Milcent, one of his alleged agents, v 

Lettre de citoyen Ruelle, ci-devant charge des affaires de France 
aux Pays-Bas, au Comite de surete generale, 24 juillet, 1793. Original 
signe, A. N., W 292, no. 204 (2*= partie), piece 74; Tuetey, vm, 3210. 

An accusation that Brissot had removed an important document from 
the papers of the Diplomatic Committee, namely, a complaint against the 
ex-minister Lebrun. 

Lettre du citoyen Ruelle, ancien charge des affaires de France, aux 
Pays-Bas, a I'accusateur public pres le Tribunal revolutionnaire, 8 
octobre, 1793. Original signe, A. N., W 292, no. 204 (2*^ partie), piece 
73; Tuetey, viii, 3360. 

A renewed statement of the same accusation. 

Lettre du sieur Tresset, fils, rue de Clery, h6tel de France, a I'ac- 
cusateur public du Tribunal revolutionnaire, 7 brumaire, an II (28 
octobre, 1793). Original signe, A. N., W 292, no. 204 (3*^ partie), 
piece 6; Tuetey, viii, 3415. 

Calls attention to the desirability of summoning Morande as a wit- 
ness against Brissot, especially in regard to his relations with the British 
government. 

Declaration faite par devant Frangois Joseph Denizot, juge au Tri- 
bunal revolutionnaire par Pierre Frangois Page, 28^ jour du ler mois 
de I'an 11 (19 octobre, 1793). Original signe, A. N., W 292, no. 204 
( 5^ partie), piece 6; Tuetey, viii, 3383. 

An accusation that Brissot was acting as the agent of England in his 
colonial policy. 

Avis de M. CoUombel, depute de la Meurthe, au Comite de Salut 
public, 7 brumaire, an II (28 octobre, 1793). Original signe, A. iV., W 
292, no. 204 (3^ partie), piece 10; Tuetey, viii, 3413. 

A charge that Brissot was guilty of complicity with Dumouriez. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 457 

Lettre de Varlet, electeur de la section de Droits, apotre de la 
liberte, au citoyen Fouquier Tinville, accusateur public du Tribunal 
revolutionnaire, 8 brumaire, an II (29 octobre, 1793). Original signe, 
A. N., W 292, no. 204 {S^ partie), piece 5; Tuetey, viii, 3419. 
A request to be called as a witness in the trial of Brissot. 

£. Other Material at the Archives Nationales 

Lettre de M. Brissot de Warville a M. Buisson en date du 10 avril, 
1789. Copie, A, N., V,^ 551. 

An explanation by Brissot of his use of Buisson's name as a person to 
whom he might send subscriptions for the Patriate Frangais. 

Lettre de M. Maissemy a M. Buisson, 13 avril, 1789. Copie. A. N., 
\\ 551. 

Commends Buisson for having disclaimed responsibility for the dis- 
tribution of the prospectus of Brissot's journal. 

Lettre de M. de Maissemy, lieutenant general de la libraire, pro- 
posant I'interdiction de la feuille periodique, intitulee le Patriate 
Frangais, ou journal libre, impartial, et national, par une societe des 
citoyens qu'annonce sans permission aucune Brissot de Warville, 
arrive au dernier degre de I'audace enhardie par impunite; avec lettre 
circulaire aux inspecteurs de la presse des provinces. Tuetey, i, 2862. 

Annulation de la societe projetee entre M. Brissot de Warville et 
le libraire, Buisson, pour la publication du Patriate Frangais, 17 sep- 
tembre, 12 novembre, 1789. Minutes, A. N., \\ 553; Tuetey, ii, 2902. 

Lettres de felicitation des Societes des Amis de la Constitution de 
I'Yonne et de Saint-Denis et de plusieurs electeurs du district de Lyon 
pour la choix de Brissot, 19, 20, 28 septembre, 1791. Originaux signes, 
A. N., B,i 11; Tuetey, I, 3033. 

The occasion was his election to the Legislative Assembly. 

Comite diplomatique (assemblee legislative), Proces-verbaux, rap- 
ports, adresses, avis, etc. A. N., F^, 4395. 
Brief summary. 

Rapport de police au sujet des menees de la cabale des Narbonne, 
Brissot et Fauchet, des conciliabules chez M. de Sillery, et de la dis- 
cussion orageuse chez le maire de Paris entre Robespierre, Brissot, 
Legendre, Guadet et Claviere. 3 avril, 1792. Original, 4. iV.,F^ 4386. 

"D'apres Bertrand de Moleville, Histoire de la Revolution de France, 
VIII, 229. Brissot, I'abbe Fauchet, Isnard, Vergniaud, et Guadet figurent 
parmi les deputes dont on avait voulu, en novembre 1791, acheter la 
voix et 1 'influence moyennant un subside mensuel de 6,000 livres pour 
chacun d'eux." Tuetey, Repertoire, iv, 163. 



458 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Declaration du sieur Joseph Petit, practicien, reque par le sieur Jean 
Pierre Civet, commissaire de police de la section du Faubourg-St.- 
Denis, portant . . . qu'il a ete denonce par les sieurs Goulet et Beu- 
zelin, payes comme lui, pour cabaler contre Brissot le jour ou celui-ei 
devait parler sur le Comite autrichien, 5 juin, 1792. Copie conforme, 
A. N., C 218, no. 160, 118; Tuetey, iv, 439. 

Proces-verbal des seances de I'assemblee electorale du departe- 
ment d'Eure-et-Loir a Dreux, 2-9 septembre, 1792. A. N., C 178. 

Proces-verbal de I'assemblee electorale du departement du Loiret 
a Beaugency, a partir du 2 septembre, 1792. A. N., C 179. 

Proces-verbal de I'assemblee electorale du departement de I'Eure 
a Bernay a partir du 6 septembre, 1792. A. N., C 178. 

This and the two preceding titles deal with Brissot's election to the 
Convention. 

Proposition faite par I'un des membres du Comite revolutionnaire 
des 48 sections seant a la Commune sur les objets suivant . . . que 
Ton arrete le nomme Raimond, mul^tre confident de Brissot et de 
Petion qui doit avoir la correspondance secrete de Brissot, relative aux 
colonies et avec I'Angleterre, ainsi que celle de Petion, rien n'empS- 
chant d'ailleurs de s'emparer des papiers de ces deux faux manda- 
taires chex eux, si on les y trouve, 31 mai, 1793. Minute non-signe, 
A. N., BB3 80; Tuetey, viii, 2683. 

Extrait des rapports et declarations requs au Bureau de surveillance 
de la Police, signalant les faits suivants: . . . le bruit s'etait repandu 
en meme temps que, le 30 mars, Brissot s'etait presente aux barrieres 
et qu'on I'avait empeche de sortir, mais que le Maire avait donne des 
ordres pour que ce depute eQt le passage libre, ce qui mecontente le 
public. 31 mars, ler avril, 1793. Extrait et original signe (2 pieces), 
A. N., AF\ 1470; Tuetey, ix, 497. 

Extrait des rapports et declarations regus au Bureau de surveillance 
de la Police, signalent les faits suivants: ... II existe, dit-on, les lettres, 
ecrites par Dumouriez a Brissot, recommandant de tacher d'envoyer, 
en qualite de commissaires dans la Belgique, Robespierre et Marat 
parceque c'est le seul moyen de s'en defaire. 6 avril, 1793. Extrait et 
original signe (2 pieces). A. N., AF'^, 1470. 

Extrait des rapports et declarations regus au Bureau de si}rveillance 
de la Police, signalant les faits suivants: . . . D'apres certains rap- 
ports Brissot aurait envoye des millions a Philadelphie, cette asser- 
tion se trouve confirmee par trois temoins qui, le 30 avril, ont depose 
contre Brissot et Guadet au Tribunel revolutionnaire. ler mai, 1793. 
Copie, A. N., AF'^ 1470; Tuetey, ix, 545. 

Declaration du sieur Gillet, secretaire du Comite revolutionnaire 
de la section de I'Unite, signalant I'hotel de Patriote HoUandais, rue 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 459 

des Moulins comme logeant nombre de deputes, entre autres, Petion, 
Brissot, Guadet, qui ont quitte leur domicile habitual et sont venus y 
chercher un refuge. Sans date (2 juin, 1793). Original signe, A. N., 
BB3, 80 (dos. 3); Tuetey, viii, 2834. 

Denonciation centre le nomme Bouquet, frere de Guadet, que Ro- 
land a nomme regisseur du chateau de Saint Cloud, chez lequel reunis- 
saient 3 fois par semaine Brissot, Vergniaud, Gensonne, Petion, 
Buzot, etc., et centre la femme de Brissot qui a loge assez longtemps 
dans le chateau qui demeure rue des Ursulines, a Saint Cloud, et chez 
laquelle doivent trouver des papiers importants, 3 juin, 1793. Origi- 
nal signe, A. N., BB^, 72; Tuetey, viii, 3027. 

Lettre ecrite a Brissot par son frere datee du 5 aotit, 1793. A. N., 
F\ 4443, no. 18. 

Contains a message from Genet. 

Arrete du Comite de sure e generate, applaudissant aux mesures 
de surete prises par le comite de surveillance et de salut public, a 
I'egard de la femme de Jacques Pierre Brissot, 9 aoGt, 1793. Extrait 
du registre des arretes generaux du Comite de stirete generale. A.N., 
AF", *286; Tuetey, vm, 3265. 

Provides for bringing Madame Brissot before the Committee of General 
Security. 

Arrete du Comite de sftrete generale, decidant que la citoyenne 
Dupont, femme de Jacques Pierre Brissot, restera en etat d'arresta- 
tion a I'hotel de Necker, rue de Richelieu, 9 aout, 1793. Extrait du 
registre des arretes generaux du Comite de sdrete generale. A. N., 
AP', *286; Tuetey, viii, 3266. 

Notices sur Brissot, A. N., AA^S 1509. 

Found among the^ papers pertaining to the Colonial Committee; with- 
out date or signature. It consists of a long series of accusations against 
Brissot — in almost every case followed by a citation from the Patriate 
Frangais — denoimcing him as responsible for the troubles in the colonies. 
See appendix C. 

A ajouter a I'affaire Brissot. A. N., F^ 4443, no. 18. 

Unsigned and undated. It consists of a number of charges, including 
complicity with Lafayette, opposition to the insurrection of August 10 
and support of the civil war in the colonies. 

Petition de la Societe des Amis de la Liberte et de I'Egalite de Ver- 
sailles a la Convention nationale, reclamant le prompt jugement de 
Brissot, et de ses infames complices, retarde par on ne salt quelle 
politique timide ou lenteur funeste, le peuple entier demandant par 
leurs voix le chatiment de ce traltre 7 septembre, 1793. Originaux 



460 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

signes de MM. Charbonnier, president et Bocquet secretaire (2 
pieces). A. N., F^ 4443; Tuetey; viii, 3311. 

Rapport de I'observateur La Tour-La-Montagne, annoncant que 
. . . Un ouvrage nouveau de Brissot est sous presse et va paraitre au 
premier jour; c'est, dit-on le testament politique de cet homme dan- 
gereux; le libraire Marat, au Palais Royal, cour des Fontaines, s'est 
charge de I'impression et de la distribution de cet ouvrage, dont on 
attend sans doute un grand effet. 13 septembre, 1793. Original signe, 
A. N., F^ 36883; Tuetey, ix, 1296. 

Rapports de I'observateur La Tour-La-Montagne, signalant les 
faits suivants: La citoyenne Brissot avec son fils se promene dans 
Paris, accompagnee d'un gendarme, s'arrete fort souvent, parle a beau- 
coup de monde, et le gendarme reste a distance. Des femmes, ont dit, 
en murmurant: *en ferait-on autant pour une pauvre marchande.' 
27 septembre, 1793. Originaux (2 pieces), A. N., F\ 3688»; Tuetey, 
IX, 1433. 

Lettre de M. Fouquier-Tinville, accusateur public du Tribunal 
revolutionnaire, au president de la Convention nationale, annoncant 
I'ecrou a la Conciergerie des deputes Brissot, etc. 7 octobre, 1793. 
Original signe, A. N., C 273, no. 692; Tuetey, vni, 1729. 

Arrete du Comite de surete generale, portant que le concierge de la 
petite maison de la Force recevra la nommee Dupont, femme Brissot 
et son enfant. 22® jour du ler mois de I'an 11 (13 octobre 1793). Ex- 
trait du registre des mandats d'amener du Comite de surete generale. 
A. N., AF", *289; Tuetey viii, 3367. 

Recompense nationale, 9 floreal, an IV. A.N., F", 570. 

The record of the pension providing for Brissot's wife and children. 

Inventaire de toutes les pieces trouvees sur la table de Brissot lors- 
que le decret qui le met en etat d'arrestation lui a ete signifie a la 
maire. A. N., F^, 4443, no. 18. 

B. Affaires £trangeres (Paris) 

Lenoir au Comte de Vergennes. Le 4 mai, 1783, Paris. Aff. etran- 
geres, Angleterre, 542, f. 183. Original. 

Note faite a la hate. Le 21 avril, 1783, a Londres. Aff. etrangeres, 
Angleterre, 542, f. 79. Minute. 

Compte rendu a son Excellence Monsieur le comte D'Hadmer . . . 
par le Sr. Receveur. Le 22 mai, 1783, a Londres. Aff. etrangeres, 
Angleterre, 542 f. 278. Minute. 

This and the three preceding titles concern the efforts made to appre- 
hend the authors of certain libels, with which Brissot was suspected of 
having some connection. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 461 

Despatch of Chauvelin, minister plenipotentiary of France, to 
Lebrun, minister of foreign affairs, London. 29 September, 1792. Aff. 
etrangeres. Correspondance politique, vol. 582, p. 255. 

A commendation of the note drawn up by Brissot and sent by the 
Legislative Assembly to foreign powers shortly after the 10th of August. 

Jullien fils, au Ministre des aflFaires etrangeres. Paris le 19 fevrier, 
I'an 1*' de I'egalite. Aff. etrangeres, Angleterre, 582, f . 182. Original. 

A report from a young man whom Brissot had recommended as a suit- 
able person to help cultivate in England a public opinion favorable to 
France. 

G. Martin a Monsieur Brissot. 31 dec. 1792. Aff. etrangeres, An- 
gleterre, 29, supplement, f. 340. Original. Affaires secretes. 

A letter giving secret information as to the supposed intentions of Ger- 
many, Austria and Russia toward France. Of considerable importance in 
connection with Brissot's attitude toward foreign war. The writer was 
probably not altogether correctly informed. See note, p. 320. 

C. District and Municipal Archives 

AT MOULINS AND GaNNAT 

Registre des deliberations prises par le conseil general de la com- 
mune de Moulins. 19 juin, 1 juillet, 1793. 

Deliberations du conseil municipal de Gannat, 27 juin, 5 juillet, 
1793. 

Proces-vesrbal du conseil general du district de Gannat, juin 27, 
1793. 

This and the two preceding titles deal with events at Moulins and 
Gannat in connection with Brissot's arrest and imprisonment. 

D. Manuscript Department of the Library of 
Congress at Washington, D.C. 

Letter of Brissot to Thomas Jefferson, Jan. 3, 1787, In Jefferson 
papers, letters from T. Jefferson, 1st series, vol. 2, 1786-87. 

A letter of inquiry on the public funds of the United States. See Ap- 
pendix A. 

Letter of Brissot to Washington. New York, Aug. 10, 1788. In 
Washington papers. 

A letter written to enclose the letter of introduction to Washington 
given by Lafayette to Brissot. At the bottom of the sheet a translation 
of Brissot's letter has been made in another hand. 



462 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Letter of Washington to Brissot. Mount Vernon, Aug. 28, 1788. 
In Washington papers. 

An acknowledgment of the above. 

Letter of William Short to Brissot. Amsterdam, Nov. 29, 1790. 

Letter of William Short to Brissot. Dec. 26, 1790. 

This and the above concern information which Brissot has furnished 
Short on the action of the Assembly, with regard to the duty on American 
tobacco. Short also speaks of the trade in oil. The two letters, particularly 
the latter, are almost illegible. 

Letter of William Thornton to Brissot. Philadelphia, Nov. 29, 
1788. In the Thornton Papers. 

A long account of Thornton's plans for the transportation of American 
negroes to a settlement in Africa, at Sierra Leona. 

. Letter of Brissot to Thornton. Paris, June 17, 1789. In the Thorn- 
ton Papers. 

An acknowledgment of the above. 

Letter of Claviere, honorary President of the SociSti des Amis des 
Noirs, to Dr. Thornton, June 16, 1789. In the Thornton Papers. 

Clavifere writes that while the Amis des Noirs approve of Dr. Thorn- 
ton's scheme in the abstract, they feel that public opinion is not yet ripe 
for action. 

E. American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, 
Massachusetts 

Daniel Parker to Andrew Craigie, Havre de Grace, June 2, 1788. 
Craigie Papers, iii. 111. 

Introducing Brissot and commending him as likely to be useful in their 
plans for speculation. 

Andrew Craigie to D. Parker, July 27, 1788. C. P., i, 4. 

Announcing the arrival of the Cato with Brissot, and stating his in- 
tention of interesting him in American speculations. 

Andrew Craigie to D. Parker (copy), New York, Oct. 29, 1788. 
C. P., I, 22. 

This and following all deal with the schemes for speculation in the 
American debt and in Western lands. 

William Duer to D. Parker, Nov. 5, 1788. C. P., ii, 52. 
Andrew Craigie to D. Parker (copy). New York, Dec. 3, 1788. 
C. P., I, 28. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 463 

Andrew Craigie to Frangois Dupont (copy), Feb. 2, 1789. C. P., 
1,25. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, Philadelphia, Feb. 9, 1789. 
C. P., II, 1. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, Feb. 9, 1789. C. P., ii, 2. 

Andrew Craigie to Frangois Dupont (copy), Feb. 17, 1789. C. P., 
1,32. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, Philadelphia, Feb. 20, 1789, 
C. P., II, 4. 

Andrew Craigie to Frangois Dupont, New York, Feb. 26, 1789. 
C. P., I, 33. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, March 15, 1789. C. P., ii, 5. 

Andrew Craigie to Frangois Dupont (copy), New York, May 4, 

1789. C. P., I, 34. 

C. Gore to Andrew Craigie, Boston, May 5, 1789. C. P., ii, 89. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, Philadelphia, May 14, 1789. 
C. P., II, 7. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, Philadelphia, July 15, 1789. 
C. P., II, 10. 

Thomas Porter to Andrew Craigie, Alexandria, Va., May 5, 1790. 
C. P., 11, 143. 

Andrew Craigie to Joel Barlow (copy), New York, May 24, 1790. 
C. P., I, 60. 

Andrew Craigie to Joel Barlow (copy), New York, June 16, 1790. 
C. P., I, 64. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, Philadelphia, June 20, 1790. 
C. P., II, 2. 

Frangois Dupont to Andrew Craigie, Philadelphia, July 4, 1790. 
C. P., II, 9. 

Andrew Craigie to frangois Dupont (copy), New York, July 21, 

1790. C. P., I, 71. 

Andrew Craigie to Frangois Dupont (copy). New York, Sept. 29, 
1790. C. P., I, 89. 

F. New York Historical Society: Scioto Papers 
1. Letters written by Brissot 

Brissot to Wm. Duer, Falmouth, Jan. 15, 1789. 

This and the following have to do with the speculation in which he was 
engaged with Craigie and Duer. 

Brissot to Wm. Duer, Paris, Jan. 31, 1789. 
Brissot to Wm. Duer, April 28, 1789. 



464 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

2. Letters to or concerning Brissot 
FranQois Dupont to Brissot, Berlin, July 26, 1783. 

Deals with the business affairs of the Dupont family. 
Account of Brissot with Andrew Craigie, dated Dec. 3, 1788, 

In connection with the speculation. 
Frangois Dupont to Brissot, Paris, Sept. 15, 1788. 

Announces that he was just on the point of starting for America. 
Miers Fisher to Brissot, Philadelphia, Nov. 25, 1788. 

This letter and the next concern Brissot's departure for France. 

Miers Fisher to Brissot, Philadelphia, Dec. 11, 1788. 
Miers Fisher to Frangois Dupont, (undated). 

This letter and the next deal with personal matters and announce the 
arrival of a Frenchman recommended by Brissot. 

Miers Fisher to Frangois Dupont, Philadelphia, Oct. 21, 1789. 
Andrew Craigie to Brissot, New York, Jan. 24, 1789. 

This and the following deal with the speculation in the American debt. 

David Maitland to Brissot, London, Feb. 10, 1789. 

Andrew Craigie to Brissot, June 13, 1789. 

Miers Fisher to Brissot, Philadelphia, Nov. 12, 1789. 

Personal matters. 

Joshua Gilpin to Brissot, Philadelphia, April 28, 1790. 

This and the next two letters concern paper moulds which Brissot was 
to procure for Gilpin in France. 

Joshua Gilpin to Brissot, Philadelphia, May 3, 1790. 
Joshua Gilpin to Brissot, Philadelphia, Oct. 7, 1790. 
Miers Fisher to Brissot, Philadelphia, May 1, 1790. 

This and the following concern a possibility of Brissot's return to 
America. 

Miers Fisher to Brissot, Philadelphia, July, 5, 1790. 
Andrew Craigie to Brissot, May 24, 1791. 

This and the following deal with the land speculation in which Brissot 
was engaged. 

Thomas Porter to Brissot, Alexandria, July 12, 1790, ._ 
Andrew Craigie to Brissot, Aug. 31, 1790. 
Andrew Craigie to Brissot, New York, Sept. 12, 1790. 
Andrew Craigie to Brissot, New York, Oct. 6, 1790. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 465 

F. de Bayard to Brissot, Philadelphia, Nov. 2, 1790. 

An expression of gratitude for kindness shown him by Miers Fisher, to 
whom he had been recommended by Brissot. 

Miers Fisher to Brissot, Philadelphia, Nov. 2, 1790. 

Introduces Wm. Temple Franklin, a grandson of Benjamin Franklin, 
who is to execute a commission for Robert Morris, to sell land in New 
York State. 

Thomas Porter to Brissot, New York, May 1, 1791. 

On financial matters. 
Jacob Shoemaker to Brissot, April 22, 1791. 

Comments on the French political situation and denounces slavery. 
Jacob Shoemaker to Brissot (midated). 

Same subject as above. 
Jacob Shoemaker to Brissot, Sept. 9, 1791. 

On the state of public credit. 
Joshua Gilpin to Brissot, Philadelphia, March 15, 1791. 

On business connected with the sending of paper moulds. 
Jacob Shoemaker to Brissot, Nov. 20, 1791. 

Criticizes Brissot's Nouveau Voyage. 

Letter to Brissot (unsigned), Bensalem, Nov. 20, 1791. 

It begins "Cher FrSre et Ch^re Soeur," and is evidently from Frangois 
and Nancy Dupont. On family matters. 

Letter to Brissot (unsigned), Philadelphia, Nov. 28, 1791. 

It begins in the same manner as the above and is evidently from the 
same persons. Informs Brissot of the criticism which his Nouveau Voyage 
has aroused in America. 

De Nancrede to Brissot, Boston, May 1, 1791. 

A note of introduction. 
Miers Fisher to Francois and Annette Dupont, Dec. 11, 1791. 

On family matters. 
Jacob Shoemaker to Brissot, Philadelphia, May 16, 1792 

Hopes that Brissot has not taken offense at the criticism on his book. 
Letter to Brissot (unsigned), Sept. 5, 1792. 

Expresses desire of seeing him in America. 



466 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Miers Fisher to Anne Dupont, Nov. 11, 1793. 

Expresses regret that he can render him no assistance on account of the 
epidemic. 

Letter to Brissot (unsigned), Jan. 20, 1793. 

Comments on French political aflFairs. 

Miers Fisher to Anne Dupont, Veuve Aublay, Philadelphia, May 
28, 1797. 

Congratulates her on being at home again. 
Letter addressed to Madame Aublay (unsigned and undated). 

Apparently from Madame Brissot, urging her to return to France. 
Miers Fisher to Anne Dupont, Bensalem, Sept. 18 (year ?). 

Condolences on the death of her brother-in-law. 

G. Miscellaneous 

Proceedings of the Committee for the abolition of the slave trade. 
1787-1819. 3 vols. British Museum, manuscripts, 21254-56. 

Contains information as to the relations between Brissot and the Amis 
des Noirs with the London society. 

Lettre de M. de Comte de Mirabeau a M. le Cont"^ G°': Paris, 30 
mai, 1785. 

Concerns the payment of the work on the Banque de St. Charles. The 
letter is the property of the late M. Paul Arbaud, of Aix in Provence. For 
a copy of it the writer is indebted to Professor F. M. Fling, of the Uni- 
versity of Nebraska. 

Brissot, notes inedites sur I'Amerique. 

These notes are in Brissot's own hand, unsigned and undated. They 
are the property of M. Charles Vellay of Paris. 

Letter of Brissot to the Convention from the Abbaye. July 24, 1793. 
Bib. Nat., Fr. nouv, acq., vol. 307. 

Asking for a hearing. 

Letter of Lord Grenville to M. le Comte de Woronzow, Dec. 20, 
1792. In correspondence of Lord Grenville. British Museum, ad- 
ditional Mss. 36814. 

Concerning a possible alliance of England with Austria, Prussia, and 
Russia against France. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 467 

II. PRINTED MATTER 

A. Bbissot's Own Works 

Le Pot-pourri, etrennes aux gens de lettres (par Brissot de Warville 
et N. F. GaUlard). London, 1777. 

A collection of satires on the bar, the press, the theatre, contemporary 
customs, etc. ; but directed chiefly against individual men of letters, who 
are attacked openly by name. 

Testament politique de I'Angleterre. Philadelphia [Amsterdam], 
1780. 

Published anonymously. It purports to be an original production 
"found among the papers of the late Lord Littleton," but from the 
account of the publication given in Brissot's memoirs (i, 137), it was 
evidently his own work. A satire on the policy of England, especially with 
regard to her colonies. 

Politick Testament van England, Amsterdam. 1781. 
A Dutch translation of the preceding. 

Lettre de Brissot (l^' fevrier, 1780) a M. Doyen sur son Histoire de 
la Ville de Chartres. 

Extract from the Journal Encyclo-pidique, April, 1780. Noted by M. 
Perroud in his edition of Brissot's memoirs. 

Recherches philosophiques sur le droit de propriete et sur le vol 
consideres dans la nature et dans la societe. Chartres, 1780. 

Reprinted in vol. vi of the Bibliotheque Philosophique. An argument 
that in a state of nature there is no such thing as exclusive property. It 
was made the basis of a bitter attack on Brissot in 1792. 

Theorie des loix crimiaelles. 2 vols. Berlin, 1781. 

First submitted to the Economic Society of Berne in competition for 
a prize on the best means of reforming the penal code, but published 
without waiting the result of the competition. Meanwhile it was sub- 
mitted in modified form for a prize offered by the Academy of Chalons- 
sur-Mame. The first volume treats of the means of lessening crime; and 
of the reformation of the criminal law with a view to making the punish- 
ment fit the crime and lessening the severity of the punishment. The 
second volume deals with the reform of the procedure in criminal trials. 

Theorie des lois criminelles, . . . nouvelle edition precedee d'une 
lettre sur I'ouvrage par le President Dupaty et suivie du Sang inno- 
cent venge ou Discours sur les reparations dues aux accuses innocents. 
2 vols. Paris, 1836. 

The editor frankly acknowledges making notes and changes. 



468 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Les Moyens d'adoucir le rigueur des loix penales en France, sans 
nuire a la surete publique, ou Discours couronnes par I'Academie de 
Chalons-sur-Marne, en 1780, suivis de celui qui a obtenu raccessit 
(par J. E. D. Bemardi) et des extraits de quelques autres memoires 
presentes a la meme Academie. Chalons-sur-Marne, 1781. 

A slightly modified form of the first part of the Theorie des lois crimi- 
nelles. Another edition with considerable additions was published in the 
Bibliotheque philosophique, vol. vi. 

Le Sang innocent venge, ou Discours sur les reparations dues aux 
accusees innocents. Couronne par I'academie des sciences et belles- 
lettres de Chalons-sur-Marne, le 25 aout, 1781. Berlin et Paris, 1781. 

Reprinted with explanatory notice and reply to the attack in the Mer- 
cure of August 3, 1782, in the Bibliotheque philosophique, vol. vi. Again 
reprinted in the second edition of the Theorie des lois criminelles, 1836, 
vol. 11. 

De la Suppression de la peine de mort. Ouvrage couronne par I'aca- 
demie de Chalons-sur-Marne, en 1780, reimprime par A. Brissot. 
Lille, 1849. 

Consists of brief extracts from the preceding work, from that part deal- 
ing with the suppression of the death penalty. 

Un Independant a I'ordre des avocats, sur la decadence du bar- 
reau en France. Berlin, 1781. 

At first published anonymously. When attributed to Brissot, he did 
not deny the authorship. Republished with Reflexions Priliminaires, 
in the Bibliotheque Philosophique, vol. vi. 

(Independance des Anglo-Americains demontree utile a la Grande- 
Bretagne. Lettres extrait du Journal d' Agriculture, avril et mai, 1782. 
In political pamphlets.) 

Published anonymously. It is attributed by the catalogue of the Li- 
brary of Congress to Brissot; but as it contains criticism on Rousseau not 
in harmony with Brissot's other writings, it seems hardly possible that it 
can be his. 

De la Verite ou Meditations sur les moyens de parvenir a la verite 
dans toutes les connoissances humaines. Neuchatel, 1782. 

A consideration of the different kinds of reasoning by which one may 
arrive at the truth, and of the kind of government and climate best suited 
to the search. 

Bibliotheque philosophique du legislatem-, du politique, du juris- 
consulte, 10 vols. Berlin et Paris, 1782-85. 

Consists of reprints of several of Brissot's earlier works {Moyens de 
prevenir les crimes en France; Le Sang innocent vengS; Recherches philoso- 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 469 

phiques sur le droit de propriete et sur le vol, and De la DScadence bu barreau 
franqois), speeches, essays, memoirs, codes and constitutions from all 
parts of Europe and from the United States. In some cases they are given 
entire and sometimes in extracts or rhumbs. 

Lettres philosophiques sur St. Paul, sur sa doctrine politique, 
morale, et religieuse et sur plusieurs points de la religion ehretienne 
consideres politiquement. Traduit de I'anglais par le philosophe de 
Ferney, et trouvees dans le porte-feuille de M. V., son aneien secre. 
taire. Neuchatel, 1783. 

An argument against the writings of St. Paul on the ground that they 
contain contradictions, improbable stories and vicious doctrines, and that 
they show a spirit of marked intolerance. Among these vicious doctrines 
Brissot places foremost that of predestination and the resurrection of the 
body. 

[The same.] Chartres, 1774. (?) 
[The same.] Hamburg, 1782. 

Le Philadelphien a Geneve ou Lettres d'un Americain sur la derniere 
revolution de Geneve, sa constitution nouvelle, I'emigration en Irlande, 
etc., pouvant servir de tableau politique de Geneve, jusqu'au 1784. 
Dublin, 1783. 

A defense of the democratic party in Geneva. 

Correspondance universelle sur ce qui interesse le bonheur de 
I'homme et de la societe. Vol. i, Neuchatel, 1783. Vol. ii, Londres, 
1783. 

An effort to bring about reform imder color of a correspondence be- 
tween savants. It was a part of his plan to include translations of German 
works. A large part is obviously Brissot's own work. 

Lettres sur la liberte pplitique, adressees a un membre de la Cham- 
bre des Communes d'Angleterre, sur son election au nombre des mem- 
bres d'une association de comte; traduites de I'anglais en frangais par 
le R. P. de Rose-Croix, ex-Cordelier. Avec des notes de I'abbe Pacot, 
auteur de I'histoire des Pays-Bas, theologien, conseiller aulique etc. 
Seconde edition. Liege, 1783. 

Attributed to Brissot. It is in fact a translation of the work of David 
Williams, a criticism of the English government under George the Third. 
The notes, which contain many sarcastic comments on the French govern- 
ment, are probably from Brissot's own pen. 

Journal du Licee (sic) de Londres, ou Tableau de I'etat present des 
sciences et des arts en Angleterre. 2 tomes en 1. Paris, 1784. 

The Journal was planned to include: (1) discoveries in physics, chemis- 
try, and anatomy; (2) discoveries in the arts; (3) book reviews; (4) cata- 



470 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

logue of novelties; (5) plays; (6) reports of judicial decisions and all that 
concerns the political and civil constitution of England; (7) notices of 
meetings of difiFerent societies. 

Tableau de la situation actueUe des Anglais dans les Indes orientales, 
et de I'etat de I'lnde en general. Paris, 1784. 

An effort to present an impartial picture of India, and to create a public 
sentiment which should demand just government and more freedom of 
trade. A most opportune subject, as England, having just lost her Ameri- 
can colonies, was giving more attention to her possessions in the East. 

L'Autorite legislative de Rome aneantie ou Examen rapide de I'his- 
toire et des sources du droit canonique. Chartres, 1784. 

An argument to show that the legislative authority of Rome rested on a 
slight foundation, since the Holy Scriptures contained almost nothing on 
dogma or discipline, the decrees of the councils were not infallible and 
many decrees of the Popes false, and the authority of the Fathers often 
doubtful. Published anonymously. 

[The same.] 1785. 

Rome jugee ou I'autorite legislative du pape aneantie, pour servir 
de reponse aux buUes passees, nouvelles and futures, du pape, etc. 
Paris, 1791. 

A new edition of the preceding, published at the time of the formation 
of the civil constitution of the clergy and directed especially against the 
Pope. Brissot's name appears in this edition. 

Un Defenseur du peuple a I'Empereur Joseph 11, sur son reglement 
concernant I'emigration, ses diverses reformes, etc. Dublin, 1785. 

An argument in favor of emigration. Published anonymously. 

Seconde lettre d'un defenseur du peuple a I'Empereur Joseph II, 
sur son reglement concernant I'emigration, et principalement sur la 
revolte des Valaques, oii Ton discute a fond le droit de revolte du 
peuple. Dublin, 1785. 

Mackintosh, W. Voyages en Europe, en Asie, et en Afrique . . . 
commencees en 1777 et finis en 1781 . . . suivis des Voyages du Colonel 
Capper dans les Indes ... en 1779. (Traduits par Brissot.) 2 vols. 
Londres et Paris, 1786. 

Brissot's name does not appear on the title-page. In the preface he gives 
his idea of the functions of a translator as follows: "II y avait des repe- 
titions, je les ai elaguees; des longueurs, j'ai abrege; des idees peu claires, 
j'ai eclarci; des faussetes, j'ai les ai refutes dans les notes; en un mot j'ai 
t§,che de conserver dans cet ouvrage tout ce qui pouvait etre instructif, 
interessant, amusant, pour les Frangais." 

[The same.] 1792. 



I 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 471 

Examen critique des voyages dans TAmerique septentrionale, de 
M. !e Marquis de Chastellux; ou lettre a M. le Marquis de Chastellux, 
dans laquelle on refute principalement ses opinions sur les Quakers, 
sur les negres, sur le peuple et sur Thomme. Londres, 1786. 

A defense of the morality and religious and political dogmas of the 
Quakers and of the ability and rights of the negroes. 

A translation of the same. Philadelphia, 1788. 

Mon mot aux academiciens. 1786. 

In his Bibliographie de Brissot (Memoires i, xxxii) M. Perroud says: 
"Je nai pu retoumer cette brochure en faveur du magnetisme animal et 
du somnambulisme; mais elle a sQrement existe, car les Memoires secrets 
du 18 juillet 1786 I'annoncent, sous cetitre: Un mot a I'oreille des acade- 
miciens et disent que c 'est un ecrit ' vigoureux.'" 

Denonciation au public d'un nouveau projet d'agiotage ou Lettre 

a M. le Comte de S sur un nouveau projet de Compagnie d'as- 

surances contre les incendies a Paris, sur ses inconveniens, et en 
general sur les inconveniens des compagnies par actions. Londres, 
1786. 

Brissot's name does not appear on the title-page. His argument is 
based on the following grounds: (1) Fires are less frequent at Paris than 
at London, whose example in the matter of insurance it is proposed to 
follow; (2) the premiums at which the company proposes to insure would 
not make it worth while; (3) it would be diflScult for the owner of a house 
to apportion the expense among his tenants; (4) the city government will 
feel less responsibility in preventing fires; (5) claims for damages will give 
rise to disputes; (6) and in the case of this particular company the pro- 
moters hope to make a monopoly of it and by connecting it with a water 
company in which they are already interested, they hope to raise the 
price of the stock of both companies. 

Seconde lettre contre la Compagnie d'assurance, pour les incendies 
a Paris et contre d'agiotage en general, adressee a MM. Perrier et 
Compagnie. Londres, 1786. 

The title-page bears this quotation from Rousseau: "On commence par 
mettre le feu a la maison pour faire jouer les pompes." Chiefly an attack 
on M. Perrier, the author of the prospectus of the proposed company, and 
a reply to his argument for connecting the fire insurance company with 
the water company. 

Lettres philosophiques et politiques sur I'histoire de I'Angleterre 
depuis son origine jusqu'a nos jours traduits de I'anglais. (Brissot 
translator.) 2 vols. London, 1786. 

In the Biographie Universelle of Michaud it is stated that these are the 
famous letters attributed to Lord Lyttletoa. This is a mistake. They are 



472 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

instead a translation of A History of England in a Series of Letters from a 
Nobleman to his Son, by Oliver Goldsmith, published anonjTnously in 
1774. The notes are by Brissot. According to the preface he allowed him- 
self considerable liberty in making the translation. The translation has 
been attributed to Madame Brissot, but Brissot says nothing to indicate 
that it was not his own work. 

De la France et des Etats-Unis, ou de I'importance de la revolution 
de I'Amerique pour le bonheur de la France, des rapports de ce roy- 
aume et des Etats-Unis, des avantages reciproques qu'ils peuvent re- 
tirer de leurs liaisons de commerce, et enfin la situation actuelle de 
Etats-Unis, par Etienne Claviere et J. P. Brissot de Warville. Londres, 
1787. 

An argimient against the mercantile theory and for greater freedom 
of trade, especially for closer commercial relations between France and 
the United States; on the ground that the United States needed the 
manufacturers of France, and France the natural products of the United 
States. The work is dedicated to the American Congress and to the 
friends of the United States in both hemispheres. 

[The same.] Reprinted in 1791 as vol. ni of the Nouveau Voyage 
dans les Etats-Unis. 

Considerations on the relative situation of France and the United 
States of America, translated from the French. London, 1788. 

A translation of the above. 
Commerce of America with Europe. London, 1794. 

Another translation of the above. Published as the second volume of 
the translation of the Nouveau Voyage. 

[The same.] A Dutch translation of the above. Amsterdam, 
1794. 

Published as the second volume of a Dutch translation of the Nouveau 
Voyage. 

Lettre a I'auteur du Mercure politique par les auteurs du traite 
intitule De la France et les Etats-Uni-s. Bouillon, 1787. 

A defense in answer to certain charges that had been made in the Mer- 
cure Politique of June 80, 1787, regarding statements contained in De la 
France et des Ftats-Unis, relative to Warren Hastings. Brissot evidently 
believed in his guilt. 

Point de banqueroute ou Lettre a un creancier de I'Etat, sur I'im- 
possibilite de la banqueroute nationale et sur les moyens de ramener 
le credit et la paix. Londres, 1787. 

Published anonymously. An argument against a declaration of bank- 
ruptcy on the following grounds: (1) That it would degrade not only the 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 473 

sovereign and the ministers, but also the entire nation before the world; 

(2) England was worse off than France, but did not declare bankruptcy; 

(3) there would be no confidence in the treaties of peace and of commerce 
made by France; it would injure both foreigners and Frenchman who had 
lent to the state; (5) there would be a general upset to financial conditions; 
and (6) a bad moral effect would result. 

[ The same.] London, 1787. 

Point de banqueroute ou Lettres a un creancier de I'Etat, sur les 
consequences de la revocation des deux impots, relativement a la 
dette nationale. Seconde partie. Paris, 1787. 

A defense of Parlement for its refusal to register certain proposed taxes, 
and a defense of France for taking the side of the republican party in 
Holland. 

Point de banqueroute ou Lettres a un creancier de I'Etat, sur I'im- 
possibilite de la banqueroute nationale, et sur les moyens de ramener 
le credit et la paix. Nouvelle edition, augmentee de trois autres lettres 
sur la dette nationale consideree relativement a la revocation des deux 
impots, a la guerre de Holland et a celle de Turquie. Londres, Oct. 
1787. 

A republication in a single work of the two preceding pamphlets. 

[The same.] London, 1788. 

Observations d'un republicain sur les differens systemes de I'ad- 
ministrations provinciales, particulierement sur ceux de MM. Turgot 
et Necker, et sur le bien qu'on pent en esperer dans les gouvernemens 
monarchiques. Lausanne, 1788. 

A severe criticism of the plans both of Necker and of Turgot, on the 
ground that they did not go to the root of the matter, and a frank state- 
ment of disbelief in the efficacy of reform under a monarchy. 

[The same.] Pans,'l789. 

Lettre a I'Empereur sur I'atrocite des supplices qu'il a substitues 
comme adoucissement a la peine de mort. Bruxelles, 1787. 

Brissot's name does not appear on the title-page. He praises the em- 
peror for having abolished the death penalty, but censures him for having 
substituted that of branding. 

Reponse a une critique des lettres d'un cultivateur americain, des 
Quakers, etc., faite par I'auteur anonyme des Recherches sur les 
£tats-Unis. April, 1788. 

The critic whom Brissot attacks was M. Mazzei, an Italian who had 
lately visited the United States. A defense of Crevecoeur, particularly of 
his attitude toward the negroes and the Quakers. 



474 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Discours sur la necessite d'etablir a Paris une societe pour concourir 
avec celle de Londres, a I'abolition de la traite et de I'esclavage des 
negres; prononcee le 19 fevrier, 1788, dans une societe de quelques 
amis rassembles a Paris, a la priere du comite de Londres. 
This address, though not signed, is undoubtedly by Brissot. 

A translation of the same. In Clarkson, Thomas, An essay on the 
impolicy of the African slave trade. Philadelphia, 1788. 

Le Moniteur. [Par Condorcet, J. P. Brissot de Warville et Claviere.J 
1788. 

Published anonymously. The catalogue of the Bibliotheque Nationale at 
Paris, and the article on Brissot in the Biographie Universelle, by Michaud, 
attribute it to Brissot, Claviere, and Condorcet. Its point of view does 
not, however, seem in harmony with the general attitude of these men. 
See Perroud, Mimoires de Brissot, i, xlvi. 

Le Patriote Frangais, ou Journal libre impartial et national, par 
une societe de citoyens. 16 mars, 1789. 
The prospectus of the Journal. 

Plan de conduite pour les deputes du peuple aux fitats Generaux, 
1789. [Paris, 1789.] 

A discussion, in much detail, of the rights and duties of the States- 
General. Its most significant features are its support of monarchy and its 
argument that the business of the States-General does not include the 
making of a constitution. 

Discours prononce par M. Brissot de Warville, a I'election du dis- 
trict de la rue des Filles-Saint-Thomas, le 21 avril, 1789. [Paris, 1789.] 

An argument that the electors should be instructed on the following 
points in order that they in turn might instruct the representatives: 
that they make a declaration of rights; that they consider the means of 
establishing a free constitution; that they provide provisionally for the 
urgent needs of the state. 

Trois mots aux Parisiens sur la necessite de publir les noms des 
candidats. 

M. Perroud, in his Bibliographie de Brissot (Memoirs de Brissot, i, xxxiii), 
notes: "Petite brochure qui parut en mai 1789, quelques jours avant 
I'election de Paris." 

Precis adresse a I'assemblee generale des electeurs de Paris, pour 
servir a la redaction du cahier des doleances de cette ville. [Paris, 
1789.] 

An appeal to the electors of Paris to adopt some system in drawing up 
their statement of grievances, to confine themselves to essentials and not 
to wander into useless details. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 475 

Observations sur la necessite d'etablir dans les diflFerents districts 
et dans I'assemblee generale des electeurs de Paris, des comites de cor- 
respondance avec les deputes de Paris aux Etats-Generaux, suivies 
d'un recit de quelques faits arrives dans I'election du District-des- 
Filles-Saint-Thomas. 1789. 

Brissot's argument was to the effect that by keeping in existence 
some machinery for concerted action the people of Paris would be better 
able to exert influence upon the States-General. 

Le Patriote Frangais. [No. 1. Paris, 6 mai, 1789.] 

An account of the opening of the States-General and a discussion of the 
cahier of the third estate at Paris. 

Lettre de M. Brissot de Warville aux souscripteurs de journal in- 
titule "Le Patriote Franqais." [12 mai, 1789.] 

An explanation of the delay in the appearance of the Patriote Franqais. 

Scrutin de I'election de Paris ou Lettre de M. B. de W. a un electeur, 
mai, 1789. 

Noted by M. Perroud in his Bibliographie de Brissot. 

Memoire aux Etats-Generaux sur la necessite de rendre des ce mo- 
ment la presse libre, et surtout pour les joumaux politiques. 1789. 

A plea for freedom of the press on the ground that it was a natiu-al right. 

No. V^ L'Ombre de J. P. Brissot aux legislateurs frangais, sur la 
liberte de la presse ou Extrait fidele d'un imprime ayant pour titre 
"Memoire aux Etats-GSneraux sur la nScessite de rendre des ce moment 
la presse libre," par J. P. Brissot de Warville. Public avec quelques 
notes par T. Dethier de I'Ourthe. Paris, an vii. 

An effort to turn to practical use the earlier writings of the Revolution. 

Reflexions sur I'admission aux Etats-Generaux des deputes de Saint 
Domingue. [Paris, 1789.] 

An argument against the admission of the deputies on the ground that 
the number was too large, that their election was neither free nor valid, 
and that their admission would injure the cause of the mulattoes. 

Projet d'une declaration des droits de la Commune pour servir au 
plan de municipalite de la ville de Paris. 

Noted by Perroud in his Bibliographie de Brissot. 

Discours prononce au district des Filles-Saint-Thomas, le 21 juillet, 
1789, sur la constitution municipale a former dans la ville de Paris. 

Given in part in Lacroix, Actes de la Commune de Paris. 



476 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Le Patriote Frangais, journal libre, impartial et national par une 
societe de citoyens, et dirige par J. P. Brissot de Warville. 8 vols., 
28 juiUet, 1789-2 juin, 1793. 

See chapter iv. 

Motifs des commissaires pour adopter le plan de municipalite qu'ils 
ont presente a I'assemblee generale des representants de la Commune, 
lus a I'assemblee generale . . . suivis du projet du plan de la munici- 
palite, Paris, aout, 1789, 

An explanation of the plan for a city government. 

Adresse de I'assemblee generale des representants de la commune de 
Paris presentee a I'assemblee nationale, 10 oct., 1789. 

This address, which was drawn up by Brissot, was occasioned by the 
transfer of the National Assembly to Paris after the events of October 5 
and 6. 

Observations sur le plan de la municipalite de Paris suivies du plan 
original et d'une declaration des droits des municipalites. Paris, [15 
nov., 1789], 

A defense against the accusation of giving the municipality too much 
power. 

Opinion de J. P. Brissot de Warville sur le question de savoir si 
Paris sera le centre d'un departement de dix-huit lieues de diametre 
ou s'il formera seul un departement en lui joignant une banlieue de 
deux ou trois lieues, Paris, Dec, 1789. 

An argument in favor of the latter alternative on account of the imique 
character of the city. 

Memoire sur les noirs de I'Amerique septentrionale lu a la Societe 
des Amis des Noirs le 3 Janvier, 1790. Paris, 1790, 

An account of his observations during his recent journey to America, 
dealing with what had been done (1) against slavery; (2) against the im- 
portation of slaves; (3) for freedom; (4) for the education of the negro. 

Adresse a I'Assemblee Nationale pour I'abolition de la traite des 
Noirs, par la Societe des Amis des Noirs, 5 fevrier, 1790. 

The address appears to have been the work of Brissot, at that time 
president of the society. 

Discours sur la rarete du numeraire et sur les moyens d'y remedier, 
prononce a I'assemblee generale des represantants de la Commune de 
Paris, le 10 fevrier, 1790. Paris, 1790, 

An attack on the methods of the Caisse d'escompte and an argument for 
its more rigid control by the government. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 477 

Motion sur la necessite de circonscrire la vente des biens ecclesias- 
tiques aux municipalites dans leur territoire etc.; presentee a I'as- 
semblee generale des representants de la Commune de Paris. 22 mai, 
1790. Paris, 1790. 

An argument to show that the municipalities were to get an unduly 
large benefit from the unrestricted sale to them of chiu-ch lands. 

Rapport sur la lettre de M. de Bourges au Comite de Constitution, 
concernant I'affaire des juifs, fait par M. Brissot de Warville a I'as- 
semblee generale des representants de la Commune de Paris, le 29 mai, 
1790. [Paris, 1790.] 

An argument in favor of giving the rights of active citizens to the Jews. 

Discours sur la vente des biens ecclesiastiques et sur les necessite 
de I'attribuer, pour Paris, au seul bureau de ville, a I'exclusion des 
sections etc.; prononce a I'assemblee generale des representants de la 
Commune de Paris, le 14 juin, 1790. [Paris, 1790.] 

A plea for centralization in city government. 

Rapport dans I'affaire de MM. D'Hosier et Petit-Jean, lu aux 
Comites de recherches de I'Asemblee nationale et de la municipalite 
de Paris, le 29 juillet, 1790. Paris, 1790. 

A defense of the alleged despotic action of the committee. 

Another edition with a covering title containing the words, "Pro- 
jet de contre-revolution par les somnambulistes ou rapport," etc. 

A Stanislas Clermont . . . sur le diatribe de ce dernier contre les 
Comites de recherches et sur son apologie de Madame Jumilhac et des 
illumines. Paris, 1790. 

This and the following, a defense of the committee apropos of the same 
subject as the above. 

Replique de . . . a Stanislas Clermont, concernant ses nouvelles 
observations sur les Comite de recherches, sur les causes des troubles, 
les foUicuIaires, le long Parliament d'Angleterre, M. Necker, etc. 
Paris, 1790. 

Lettres a M. le Chevalier de Pange sur sa brochure intitulee "Re- 
flexions sur la delation et sur le Comite de recherches." Paris, 1790. 
A defense of the Comite de recherches. 

Discours prononcee a la section de la Bibliotheque dans son assem- 
blee generale du 24 octobre, 1790, sur la question du renvoi des mi- 
nistres. [Paris, 1790.] 

An appeal to the people to demand the dismissal of the ministry. 



478 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Lettre de J. P. Brissot a M. Barnave, sur ses rapports concernant 
les colonies, les decrets qui les ont suivis, leurs consequences fatales; 
sur sa conduite dans le cours de la Revolution; sur le caractere des 
vrais democrates; sur les bases de la Constitution, les obstacles qui 
s'opposent a son achevement, la necessite de la terminer promptement. 
Paris, 1790. 

An attack on Barnave's colonial policy and an argument to the efifect 
that the troubles of the colonies were due to the laws of March and Octo- 
ber, 1790, and that unless these laws were changed the colonies would be- 
come independent, or would pass under the government of some foreign 
nation. 

Reflexions sur le nouveau decret rendu pour le Martinique et les 
colonies le 29 novembre, 1790, pour servir de suite a la lettre a M. 
Barnave. [Paris, 1790.] 

A criticism of the decree which provided for sending out to the colonies 
commissioners and troops. 

Reflexions sur I'etat de la Societe des electeurs patriotes, sur ses 
travaux, sur les formes propres a faire de bonnes elections . . . lues a 
I'assemblee de cette societe dans la seance du 21 decembre, 1790. 
Paris, 1790. 

A discussion of the best methods of voting. 

Liberte de la presse, precis pour J. P. Brissot contre M. Bexon, 
se disant representant de la municipalite de Remiremont. Paris, 1790. 

A defense of the freedom of the press apropos of the accusations of 
libel brought against Brissot by the municipality of Remiremont. 

J. P. Brissot au libelliste, Louis-Marthe-Gouy. 
A denial of the allegations of Gouy and a promise to answer them. 

Replique de J. P. Brissot a la "Premiere et derniere Lettre de Louis- 
Marthe-Gouy," defenseur de la traite des noirs et de I'esclavage. 
Paris, 1791. 

A defense of his own policy with regard to the slave trade and a most 
vituperative attack on Gouy. 

Afifaire de Tobago. Reponse de J. P. Brissot aux lettres inserees 
dans le Journal de Paris, par MM, Dillon . . . et Henrion [de 
Flozelles] . . . sur les reclamations des planteurs de Tobago. [Paris, 
1791.] 

Concerns the decision of a court by virtue of which certain planters, 
whom these writers defended, escaped paying their debts. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 479 

Nouveau Voyage dans les Etats-Unis de TAinerique septentrionale 
{fait en 1788]. 3 vols. Paris, 1791. 

Volume III consists of the work previously published by Claviere and 
Brissot: "De la France et des £tats-Unis." 

New travels in the United States of America performed in 1788. 
Translated from the French. Dublin, 1792. 
A translation of the above. 
[The same.] 2 vols. London, 1792. 

[The same.] 2 vols. London, 1794. 

This edition contains a sketch of the life of Brissot, said to be by Joel 
Barlow, who translated the Voyage from the French. It includes a por- 
trait of Brissot and an appendix. M. Perroud, in his Bibliograpkie de 
Brissot {Memoires, i, xxxviii, notes: "Cette vie, traduite separement en 
anglais, a ete publiee en 1798. Note de Villenave dans I'article de Biog. 
univ. de Beaulieu." 

[The same.] Boston, 1797. 

Nieuwe Reize in de Vereenigde Staaten van Noord-Amerika. . . . 
Uit het Fransch vertaald en met eenige ophelderingen en bijvoegselen 
vermeerderd. 3 deel. Amsterdam. [1794.] 

Reise durch die vereinigten Staaten von Nord Amerika im Jahre 
1788 aus dem Franzosischen mit der kurtzen Lebensgeschichte des 
Verfassers und mit einigen Erlauterungen und Zusatzen vermehrt 
von Theophil Frederik Ehrmann. Durkheim an der Haard, 1792. 

Nya resa genom Nord-Americanska fristaterna ar 1788. Fran 
franska originalet sammendregen . . . af Johan R. Forster. Ofwersatt 
fran tyskan. Stockholm, 1799. 

Discours sur la question de savoir si le roi pent etre juge, prononce a 
I'assemblee des Amis de la Constitution, dans la seance du 10 juillet, 
1791. Paris. [1791.] 

An argument in favor of holding the king responsible for his misdeeds. 
Made at the time of the republican crisis after the flight to Varennes. 
One of Brissot's most noted speeches. 

A Discourse upon the question whether the king shall be tried. 
Translated by P. G. de Nancrede. First American edition, Boston, 
1791. 

A translation of the above. 

Discours prononce par M. Brissot a I'assemblee des Amis de la Con- 
stitution le 10 juillet, 1791, ou Tableau frappant de la situation actuelle 
des puissances de I'Europe. [Paris, 1791.] 

An extract from the above address. 



480 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Recueil de quelques ecrits principal ement extraits du "Patriate 
Frangais," relatif a la discussion du parti a prendre pour le roi, et de 
la question sur le republicanisme et la monarchic. Paris, 1791. 

A collection of several important articles which had previously ap- 
peared in the Patriate Frangais. 

Reponse de J. P. Brissot au second Chant du Coq. [Paris, 1791.] 
A denunciation as libelous of a poster in which he had been assailed. 

Discours sur les conventions, prononce a la societe des Amis de la 
Constitution, seante aux Jacobins, le 8 aout, 1791. [Paris, 1791.] 

A plea for fixed, periodic conventions which should be independent of 
the executive and legislative branches of the government. 

Reponse de Jaques Pierre Brissot a tons les libellistes qui ont 
attaque et attaquent sa vie passee. Paris, 1791. 

An account of his early life and a defense of the charges made against 
him in connection with his candidacy for election to the Legislative As- 
sembly. 

The life of J. P. Brissot, deputy from Eure and Loire to the na- 
tional convention, written by himself and translated from the French. 
London, 1794. 

A translation of the above. 
Aux Electeurs du departement de Paris. 

Noted by M. Perroud in his Bibliographie de Brissot in connection with 
the elections to the States-General. But it appears rather to be the 
pamphlet published in connection with the Theveneau de Morande con- 
troversy. Aug. 26, 1791. 

Replique a Charles Theveneau Morande. Paris, 1791. 

A reply to further attacks. See the preceding work. 
Dernier Mot de J. P. Brissot sur un nouveau libelle de Morande 
et sur les autres libelles, adresse aux electeurs de Paris. [Paris, 1791.] 

Discours sur la necessite de maintenir le decret rendu le 15 mai, 1791, 
en faveur des hommes de couleur libres, prononce le 12 septembre, 1791, 
a la seance de la societe des Amis de la Constitution. [Paris, 1791.] 

A protest against any reconsideration of the decrees in favor of the 
mulattoes. 
Discours sur I'utilite des societes patriotiques et populaires, sur la 
necessite de les maintenir et de les multiplier par-tout, prononce 
le 28 septembre, 1791, a la seance de la societe des Amis de la Consti- 
tution. [Paris, 1791.] 

Emphasizes the need of such societies to keep watch over the admin- 
istration and to discuss and prepare the way for good laws. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 481 

Discours sur I'organisation des comites, destine a etre prononce a 
I'Assemblee nationale le 12 octobre, 1791, prononce aux Jacobins le 
14 octobre. Paris, 1791, 

An argument in favor of having as few committees as possible. 

Discours sur les emigrations et sur la situation de la France rela- 
tivement aux puissances etrangeres, prononce le 20 octobre, 1791, a 
I'Assemblee nationale. Paris, 1791. 

An argument that in meting out punishment to the Emigres a distinc- 
tion should be made between the princes and the public functionaries on 
the one hand, and private citizens on the other. 

Discours sur un projet de decret relatif a la revolte des Noirs, pro- 
nonce a I'Assemblee nationale, le 30 octobre, 1791. Paris, 1791. 

An expression of doubt as to the reported revolt and a plea for the re- 
arming of the mulattoes. 

Discours sur la necessite de suspendre momentanement le paiement 
des liquidations au-dessus le 3,000 1. avant d'emettre de nouveaux as- 
signats, et sur les finances en general, prononce a I'Assemblee nationale 
dans la seance du 24 novembre, 1791, [Paris, 1791]. 

A criticism of the loose management of the finances and a plea for the 
issue of assignats of small denominations. 

'' Discours sur les causes des troubles de Saint-Domingue, prononce 
a la seance du ler decembre, 1791. Paris, [1791]. 

An argument that the revolt was caused by the mulattoes and negroes 
being deprived of their rights. 

' Projet de decret, relatif a I'emploi des troupes destinees pour Saint- 
Domingue. Paris, 7 dec, 1791. [Paris, 1792.] 

A plea for sending to the colonies commissioners and troops who were 
to be subject only to Ihe orders of these commissioners, that is to say that 
they could not be used by the whites against the negroes and mulattoes. 

Societe des Amis de la Constitution seante aux Jacobins a Paris. 
Discours sur la necessite de declarer la guerre aux princes allemands 
qui protegent les SmigrSs, prononce le 16 decembre a la Societe. [Paris, 
1791.] 

One of Brissot's speeches in the controversy with Robespierre on the 
war question. 

Discours de J. P. Brissot, depute, sur les dispositions des puissances 
etrangeres relativement a la France, et sur les preparatifs de guerre 
ordonnes par le Roi, prononce a I'Assemblee nationale, le 29 decembre, 
1791. [Paris, 1791.] 

An argument in favor of war. 



482 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Societe des Amis de la Constitution, seante aux Jacobins a Paris. 
Second discours de J. P. Brissot, depute, sur la necessite de faire la 
guerre aux princes allemands, prononce a la societe dans le seance du 
vendredi 30 decembre, 1791. [Paris, 1791.] 

Another of his speeches in the controversy with Robespierre. 

Lettre de J. P. Brissot a M. Camus, depute a I'Assemblee nationale, 
sur difJerents abus de I'administration actuelle des finances, suivie 
d'une denonciation concemant la meme administration. Paris, 
1792. 

Brissot attacks especially a claim supported by Camus of the Duke of 
Orleans to a dot promised by Louis XV to the daughter of the regent. 

Discours de J. P. Brissot, depute de Paris, sur la necessite d'exiger 
une satisfaction de I'Empereur et de rompre le traite du premier mai, 
1756, du 17 Janvier, 1792. [Paris, 1792.] 

A vehement argument in favor of war. 

Societe des Amis de la Constitution seante aux Jacobins a Paris. 
Troisieme discours de J. P. Brissot . . . sur la necessite de la guerre, 
prononce a la Societe du 20 Janvier, 1792. [Paris, 1792.] 

Discours sur la necessite politique de revoquer le decret du 24 sep- 
tembre, 1791, pour mettre fin aux troubles de Saint-Domingue; pro- 
nonce a I'Assemblee nationale, le 2 mars, 1792. [Paris, 1792.] 

An argument that the decree of September, 1791, taking away the civil 
rights of the mulattoes, and not the decree of May, 1791, which gave them 
these rights, was the cause of the revolt. 

Discours sur I'office de 1' Empereur du 17 fevrier, 1792, et denon- 
ciation contre M. Delessart, ministre des AfiFaires etrangeres, pro- 
nonce a I'Assemblee nationale, le 10 mars, 1792. (Paris, 1792.] 

A denunciation of the Emperor as well as of M. Delessart. 

Discours de MM. Brissot et Guadet, deputes a I'Assemblee nationale, 
prononces a la seance de la Societe des Amis de la Constitution, le 
25 avril, 1792. [Paris, 1792.] 

Chiefly an attack on Robespierre. 

Discours sur la denonciation contre le Comite autrichien, et contre 
M. Montmorin ci-devant ministre des AfiFaires etrangeres prononce a 
I'Assemblee nationale, a la seance du 23 mai, 1792. [Paris, 1792.J 

An attack on the government with regard to its policy in foreign affairs 
on the ground that it was under the influence of persons really devoted to 
Austrian and anti-revolutionary interests. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 483 

Lettres de J. P. Brissot a M. Dumouriez, ministre de la guerre 
[16, 17 juin, 1792]. [Paris, 1792,] 

A bitter denunciation of Dumouriez apropos of his part in causing the 
fall of the Girondin ministry. 

Discours de J, P. Brissot, . . . sur les causes des dangers de la 
patrie et sur les mesures a prendre; prononee le 9 juillet, 1792. [Paris, 
1792.] 

An argument in favor of pronouncing the country in danger, decreeing 
the responsibility of the ministers, punishing the generals who try to con- 
trol the assembly, and selling the property of the emigres. 

Opinion de J. P. Brissot, . . . sur les mesures de police generate 
proposees par M. Gensonne, prononee le 25 juillet, 1792. [Paris, 
1792.] 

An argument in support of the measures proposed by Gensoime but less 
hostile to the king than some of Brissot's previous speeches. 

Opinion de J. P. Brissot, . . . sur le marche a suivre en examinant 
la question de la decheance et les autres mesures, prononcee le 26 
juillet, 1792. [Paris, 1792.] 

This speech, like the preceding, rather more moderate than that of 
July 9. 

Discours de J. P. Brissot . . . sur les denonciations relatives au 
general Lafayette, prononee le 10 aout, 1792. [Paris, 1792.] 

The date was really August 8. Brissot fully supports the attack on 
Lafayette. 

Projet de declaration de I'Assemblee nationale aux puissances 
etrangeres redige par J. P. Brissot. [Paris, 1792.] 

A protest against breaking off all relations with France on the part of 
neutral governments on account of the suspension of the king. 

Rapport fait au nom de la Commission extraordinaire, des Comites 
diplomatique et militaire, le 20 aout 1792, sur le licenciement des 
regiments suisses, au service de la France, par J. P. Brissot. [Paris, 
1792.] 

An argument based chiefly on the events of August 10 in favor of dis- 
banding the Swiss regiments. 

Rapport fait a la Convention nationale au nom de la Commission 
extraordinaire et du Comite diplomatique sur les reclamations des 
cantons de Berne et d'Uri, relativement a I'evacuation des defiles de 
Porentruy le 3 octobre, 1792. Paris, [1792]. 

An argument that the French had a right to occupy these passes. 



484 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Rapport et projet de decret concemant rintroduction, dans la ville 
de Geneve, de 1600 Suisses des troupes de Berne et de Zurich, presentes 
au nom de Comite diplomatique le 16 octobre, 1792. Paris, [1792]. 

An argument that such introduction of troops was a violation of existing 
treaties. 

A tous les Republicains de France, sur la Societe des Jacobins de 
Paris. Paris, 1792. 

Written at the time of his explusion from the Jacobin Club; a defense 
of his policy and an attack upon the majority of the Jacobins as a party of 
disorganizers. 

[The same.] Reprinted by the Patriate Franqais, 29 octobre, 1792. 

[The same.] Reprinted with pamphlets of Kersaint and Lan- 
thenas. (November, 1792.) 

Rapport fait a la Convention nationale, au nom du Comite diplo- 
matique, sur la negotiation entre Geneve et la Republique de France, 
et sur la transaction du 2 novembre, 1792, le 21 novembre. Paris, 
1792. 

An argument to show that Geneva had violated the guaranteed neu- 
trality. 

Discours du citoyen Brissot a la Convention nationale concemant la 
Republique de Geneve, extrait du Moniteur du 22 novembre, 1792. 
[Paris, 1792.] 

An extract from the above report. 

Dernier mot sur Clootz. In Reponses au Prussian Clootz, par Ro- 
land, Kersaint, Guadet et Brissot. [Paris, 1792.] 
A defense against accusations of federalism. 

Discours sur le proces de Louis, prononce a la Convention nationale, 
le ler Janvier, 1793. [Paris, 1793.] 

An argument for an appeal to the primary assembly. 

Rapport fait au nom du Comite de defense generale, sur les disposi- 
tions du gouvernement britannique en vers de France, et sur les mesures 
a prendre, prononce a la Convention nationale, dans sa seance du 12 
Janvier, 1793. Paris, [1793]. 

A denunciation of England's treatment of France and an argument in 
favor of war. 

Report of the Committee of General Defense on the dispositions of 
the British government towards France, and on the measures to be 
taken. Addressed to the National Convention of France. . . . Also 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 485 

the second report on a declaration of a war with England. ... To 
which is added the Protests entered upon the journals of the Lords 
and House of Parliament against a war with France, etc. London, 
1793. 

Includes a translation of the preceding report. 

Rapport sur les hostilites du roi d'Angleterre et du Stathouder des 
Provinces-Unis, et sur la necessite de declarer que la Republic fran^aise 
est en guerre avec eux, au nom du Comite de defense generale. [Paris, 
1793.] 

An argument that war was now inevitable, and that it was the desire, 
not of the English people, but of the English ministry. 

Expose de la conduite de la nation frangaise envers le peuple anglais 
et des motifs qui ont amene la rupture entre la Republique frangaise et 
le roi d'Angleterre, precede du rapport prononce par Brissot au nom 
de Comite diplomatique et du discours de Ducos, 12 Janvier, fevrier, 
1793. [Paris,] 1793. 

Includes the Rapport fait au nom de Comite de defense gtnerale and the 
Rapport sur les hostilites du Roi d'Angleterre. 

J. P. Brissot, sur la denonciation de Robespierre, et sur I'adresse 
pretee aux 48 sections de Paris. [Paris, 1793.] 

A defense against the change of being allied with Dumouriez and 
Morande and of being suborned by Pitt. 

A ses commettans siu" la situation de la Convention nationale, sur 
I'influence des anarchistes et les maux qu'elle a causee, sur la necessite 
d'aneantir cette influence pour sauver la Republique. Paris, [1793]. 

An attack on the Mountain and a defense of his own position. 

The Anarchy and horrors of France displayed. By a member of the 
Convention. Extracts from J. P. Brissot's address to his constituents, 
with a preface. [London, 1793.] 

A translation of part of the above. 

J. P. Brissot to his constituents on the situation of the national con- 
vention. London, 1794. 

Another translation of the above. A portion of the speech is also trans- 
lated in an appendix to Burke's preface to the address. 

Memoires de Brissot . . . sur ses contemporains, et la Revolution 
frangaise, publics par son fils [A. Brissot] avec des notes et des eclair- 
cissements historiques, par M. F. de Montrol. 4 vols; vols, i-ii, Paris, 
1830; vols, iii-iv, Paris, 1832. 

See below. 



486 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

[The same.] Notes by M. de Lescure. Paris, 1877. 
Scarcely more than a reprint of the preceding. 

[The same.] Memoires pubHes avec Etude critique et notes par 
M. Perroud. 2 vols. Paris, [1910]. 

When M. Perroud undertook his new edition, the Montrol edition had 
long since been regarded with suspicion, some critics even holding that it 
was entirely apocryphal. But M. Perroud, in his Etude Critique, proves 
beyond doubt that Brissot did leave memoirs, but that the edition of M. 
Montrol consists largely of interpolations. As M. Montrol seems to have 
agreed with the publishers beforehand to produce four volumes, it was not 
strange that he had to resort to padding. Of the 1300 pages of the edition 
of 1830 M. Perroud finds that 600 pages were taken from other works, 
though for the most part from those of Brissot himself; that another 100 
pages are suspicious, and that still another 100 consist of letters, written 
or received by Brissot. What remains forms the basis of this new edition. 
It consists of two parts: the first covering the period of his childhood and 
youth; the second consisting of his account of his arrest and two projeta 
de defense. Even though the gap includes the most important period of 
his life and the time of his greatest political activity, the memoirs as they 
stand, thus critically edited, furnish one of the most valuable soiu-ces for 
a study of his career. 

Correspondance et papiers precedes d'un avertissement et d'un 
notice sur sa vie par M. Perroud. Paris, 1912. 

See above, preliminary note under manuscript material. 



B. Controversial Matter 

As indicated by the heading a large portion of the following material 
is intensely partisan, and was written in the heat of the conflict. For 
the most part it concerns either Brissot's character or some phase of 
his policy and involves both his uprightness as a man and his wisdom 
as a politician. 

1. Pamphlets, Addresses, Contemporary Criticisms 

Baillie. L Anti-Brissot; par un petit blanc de Saint-Domingue. 
[Paris.] 

An attack on Brissot's colonial policy. 

Basire, Claude. A. J. P. Brissot. [1792.] 

Accounts for the whereabouts of a certain letter for which Brissot had 
charged him with being responsible. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 487 

Bergasse, Nicholas. Declaration . . . au sujet d'un article insere dans 
le journal Patriote de M. Brissot de Warville. [Paris, 1790.] 

Concerns an alleged plot to convey the king to Rouen. Bergasse denied 
that he had any part in such a plot, even if it existed. 

Bertrand de Moleville, Antoine Francois. Histoire de la Revolu- 
tion de France. 14 vols. Paris, 1801-1803. 

Contains material on the relations between the author and Brissot, who 
were political enemies. Written from the point of view of an aristocrat. 
Intensely partisan. 

Observations, adressees a I'Assemblee nationale. . . sur les dis- 

cours prononces par IVIM. Gensonne et Brissot dans la seance du 23 
mai. [Paris, 1792.] 

Reply to accusations made against the Austrian committee. 

Bonne-Carrere, Guillaume. Expose de la conduite de Brissot 
depuis le commencement de la Revolution, jusqu' a ce jour [5 septem- 
bre, aniij. [Paris, 1794.] 

A defense of the part he had played in the Revolution. He was a bitter 
enemy of Brissot. 

Burke, Edmund. Preface to the address of M. Brissot to his con- 
stituents, translated by the late William Burke, Esq., 1794; vol. iv. In 
Burke's works, 9 vols. Boston, 1839. 

Burke asserts that the address of Brissot is simply a condemnation of 
the Revolution out of the mouths of the revolutionists themselves. 

Camus, Armand Gaston. Lettre de . . . aM. Brissot, 26 mars, 1791. 
Paris, 1791. 

A protest to the effect that Brissot, without suflBcient proof, had made 
accusations in regard, to the management of the finances. 

Chabot, Frangois. A. J. P. Brissot. [Paris, 1792.] 

An accusation that Brissot tried to hinder the Revolution of August 1 0, 
and on the other hand did nothing to hinder the massacres of September. 

Champagneux, L. A., ed. CEuvres de MM. J. Ph. Roland, . . . pre- 
cedees d'un discours preliminaire. 3 vols. Paris, year viii. 

The preface gives some details about Brissot's manuscripts, but as they 
are based on hearsay evidence, they are to be taken with caution. 

Chastellux, Marquis Francois Jean de. Voyage . . . dans I'Amerique 
septentrionale, dans les annees 1780, 1781, et 1782. 2 vols. Paris, 
1786. 

A work which, on account of its criticism of the Quakers and negroes, 
was sharply criticized by Brissot. 



488 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Claviere, Etienne. Adresse de la Societe des Amis des Noirs, a 
I'Assemblee nationale, . . . dans laquelle on approfondit des relations 
politiques et commerciales entre la metropole et les colonies, etc. 
Paris, 1791. 

A statement of the principles of the Amis des Noirs and a plea for the 
extension of civil rights to the mulattoes. 

Clermont-Tonnerre, C® Stanislas, Marie Adelaide de. Reflexions 
sur I'ouvrage intitule "Projet de contre-revolution par les somnam- 
bulistes, ou rapport dans I'affaire de MM. Dhosier et Petit-Jean, lu 
aux comites de recherches de I'Assemblee nationale et de la municipalite 
de Paris, le 29 juillet, 1790, par J. P. Brissot." Paris, 1790. 

An attack on the Comite des Recherches of the Commune of Paris, on the 
ground that its methods savored too much of the old regime. 

Nouvelles observations sur les comites des recherches. Paris. 



[1790.] 

A reply to Brissot's answer to the above. 

Sur le derniere replique de J. P. Brissot, . . . de 14 octobre, 

1790. Paris, 1790. 

A continuation of the same controversy as the above. 

Courtois, Edme Bonaventure. Lettre a I'auteur du Patriate Fran- 
gais [signe : Courtois, commandant de la garde nationale d'Arcis-sur- 
Aube, 20 aoiit, 1791]. [Paris, 1791.] 

A letter approving the attitude of Brissot in the crisis of July, 1791. 

Desmoulins, Camille. Jean Pierre Brissot demasque [1 fevrier, 
1792]. [Paris, 1792.] 

An arraignment of Brissot's whole life, up to 1792, with special emphasis 
on his war policy. 

Societe des amis de la liberte et de I'egalite seante aux ci-devant 

Jacobins, Saint Honore, a Paris. Fragment de I'histoire secrete de la 
Revolution. [Paris, 19 mai, 1793.] 

An attack on Brissot and his political adherents, on the ground that 
they were advocates of royalty and federalism. 

Histoire des Brissotins ou Fragment de I'histoire secrete de la 

Revolution et des six premiers mois de la Republique. [Paris,] 
1793. 

The same work as the preceding, printed by order of the Jacobin so- 
ciety. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 489 

Desmoulins, Camille. The History of the Brissotins, or part of the 
history of the Revolution, and of the first six months of the Repub- 
He, in answer to Brissot's address to his constituents. Printed at Paris 
by order of the Jacobin Club, and dispersed by their corresponding 
clubs. London, 1794. 

A translation of the preceding. 

(Euvres recueillies et publiees d'apres les textes originaux et 

precedees d'une etude biographique et litteraire, par J. Claretie. 
2 vols. Paris, 1874. 

Duluc, Perisse. Lettre de . . . a M. Brissot, auteur du Patriote 
Franqais, sur les assignats. Paris, 1790. 

An answer to Brissot's objection that his (Duluc's) former opposition to 
the assignats prevented his being an efficient member of the committee 
charged with their emission. 

' Dumouriez, C. F. P., General. Sur les troubles des colonies en re- 
futation des deux discours de M. Brissot . . , P' et 3™^ decembre, 
1791. Paris, 1791. 

. Dutrone La Couture, Jacques Frangois. Adresse aux Francois, 
contre la Societe des Amis des Noirs. 

Garran de Coulon, J. P. Rapport sur les troubles de Saint-Domingue. 
4 vols. [Paris, 1797-99.] 

Favorable to the cause of the negro. 

Genlis, Madame de. Precis de la conduite de . . . depuis la Revo- 
lution, suivi d'une lettre a M. de Chartres et de reflexions sur la 
critique. Hambourg, 1796. 

Contains an account of Madame de Genlis's relation to Brissot and to 
his wife, which does ^not agree with Brissot's own account. Madame de 
Genlis is, however, not to be trusted. 

• Gouy d'Arcy, Jean Louis Marthe de. Premiere et derniere lettre 
de . . . a Jean Pierre Brissot, auteur d'un journal intitule Patriote 
Franqais. Paris, le 10 Janvier, 1791. [Paris, 1791.] 

A somewhat coarse invective against Brissot, on account of his advo- 
cacy of the negro and the mulatto. Gouy d'Arcy was one of the leading 
deputies who represented Santo Domingo. 

[The same.] Another edition. Paris, 1791. 

Fragment d'une lettre de L. M. de Gouy, . . . adresse a 

ses commettans ou Seconde fustigation de J. P. Brissot. [Paris, 
1791.] 

On the same subject as the above. 



490 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Kovalevsky, Massimo. I Dispacci degli ambasciatori veneti alia 
corte de Francia durante la rivoluzione. Turino, 1895. 

Valuable observations as to state of public opinion, as seen by ambas- 
sadors in little sympathy with it. 

Lou vet de Couvray, Jean Baptiste. Societe des Amis de la Consti- 
tution. Discours sur la guerre, prononcee a la Societe, le 9 Janvier, 
1792. [Paris.] 

A speech in ardent support of Brissot's war policy. 

Malassis, A. P. ed. fieri ts et pamphlets de Rivarol, recueillis pour 
le premiere fois, et annotes par A. P. Malassis. Paris, 1877. 

Contains what purports to be a RSponse de M. le Baron de Grim, ckargS 
des affaires de S. M. I'lmperateur de Russie a Paris, a la lettre de M. Chasse- 
bceuf de Volney, in which occurs the accusation that Brissot was a police 
spy in the pay of M. Lenoir. Not reliable. 

Mallet du Pan, J. Considerations sur la nature de la Revolution de 
la France, et sur les causes qui en prolongent la duree. Londres et 
Bruxelles. [1793.] 

Contains criticisms of Brissot and the Girondins from a hostile point of 
view. 

Manuel, L. P. La Police de Paris devoilee. 2 vols. Paris, I'an second 
delaliberte. [1791.] 

Marivaux, J. C. Martin de. Lettre de . . . a I'auteur de la diatribe 
intitulee "Lettre de J. P. Brissot a M. Barnave, sur ses rapports con- 
cernant les colonies, 31 decembre, 1790." [Paris, 1790.] 

An attack on Brissot, not merely on account of his colonial policy, but 
also for alleged monarchical sentiments. 

Mirabeau, Comte de. De la Caisse d'escompte. [Paris?] 1785. 

L' Analyse des papiers anglais. 102 nos. 4 vols. 1787-88. 

Served as an organ for the Amis des Noirs. "Le litre de cetie feuille," 
dit Brissot, qui eut fait un des rSdacteurs, "Hait un marque d la faveur 
duquel Mirabeau repandait des vSrith hardies." 

Montmorin, Saint Hereme C. A. M. de. Observations de M. de 
Montmorin adressees a 1' Assemblee nationale, sur les discours pro- 
nonces par M. Gensonne et Brissot, dans la seance du 23 mai, 1792. 
[Paris.] 

A denial of the accusation brought against him and a defense of his 
policy. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 491 

Moreau de Saint-Mery, M. L, E. Considerations presentees aux 
vrais amis du repos et du bonheur de la France a I'occasion des nouveax 
mouvemens de quelques soi-disant Amis des Noirs. Paris, 1791. 

No title-page. Another copy has title-page with above and "Paris» 
1791," and one extra page at the end, with a brief justification of Moreau de 
Saint-Mery's personal conduct. 

M . . . J. Avis d'un depute a ses coUegues; sur le discours de M. 
Brissot, lu a la seance du 30 octobre, 1791, concernant une revolte 
de negres a Saint-Domingue, signed J. M. ... 1'. Paris, 1791. 
A criticism of Brissot's colonial policy. 

Paganel, Pierre. Essa historique et critique sur la Revolution 
frangaise. 3 vols. Paris, 1815. 

Written from the point of view of a member of the Plain. On the whole, 
friendly to the Girondins, though opposed to Brissot's colonial policy. 
{La l*""* edition fut enlevee entiere -par I'ordre de Vancien gouvernment en 
1810, et detruite en totality en 1813.) 

Pange, M. le chevalier de. Reflexions sur la delation et sur le comite 
des recherches. Paris, 1790. 

A severe attack on the methods of the Committee; with special refer- 
ence to their pursuit of M. Besenval. 

Peltier, Jean Gabriel. Histoire de la Revolution du 10 aotlt, des 
causes qui I'ont produite; des evenements qui I'ont precedee, et des 
crimes qui I'ont suivie. 2 vols. Londres, 1795. 

Includes the events leading up to the Revolution of August 10 and the 
results, as well as the events of the day itself. From the point of view of 
a royalist and reactionary. 

Phillips, Richard. Biographical anecdotes of the founders of the 
French Republic. 2 vols. London, 1788. 

Contains an interesting and sympathetic sketch of Brissot, evidently 
based on first-hand information. Published anonymously, attributed to 
Phillips. 

- Pons, F. R. J. de. Observations sur la situation politique de Saint 
Domingue, 27 novembre, 1790. [Paris, 1790.] 

A defense of the slave trade on the ground that it was necessary for the 
existence of the French colonies. 

Robert, Frangois. A ses freres de la Societe des Amis de la Constitu- 
tion, de la Societe fraternelle et du club des Cordeliers. [Paris.] 

An explanation of why he did not receive an appointment as ambassador 
to Constantinople. Throws light on Brissot's influence with the Girondin 
ministry. 



492 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Robespierre, Maximilien. Societe des Amis de la Constitution. Dis- 
cours de . . . sur le parti que I'Assemblee nationale doit prendre re- 
lativement a la proposition de guerre annoncee par le pouvoir executif, 
prononce a la societe le 18 decembre, 1791. [Paris, 1791.] 

A speech against Brissot's war policy. 

Societe des Amis de la Constitution. Discours de . . . sur la 

guerre prononce a la societe des Amis de la Constitution, le 2 Janvier, 
1792. Paris, 1792. 

Another speech in opposition to war. 
Societe des Amis de la Constitution. Troisieme discours de . . . 



sur la guerre, prononce . . . dans la seance du 26 Janvier, 1792, I'an 
quatrieme de la liberte. Paris, 1792. 

Third speech in opposition to war. 

Reponse aux discours de MM. Brissot et Guadet, du 25 avril. 



1792, prononce a la Societe des Amis de la Constitution. Paris, 1792. 

A continuation of the attack begun by Robespierre, April 4. 

Roland, de la Platiere, J. M. Lettre a Brissot de Warville. Lyon, 
1" mars, 1790. [1790.] 

A friendly protest that Brissot had written of conditions in Lyons in 
such a way as to make Roland responsible for views which he did not hold. 
Throws light on relations between the two men. 

Rousseau, Le Comte, de. Discours de . . . prononce le 12 fevrier a 
I'assemblee de la Commune, sur les opinions de MM. Kormann et 
Brissot de Warville, relatives a la caisse d'escompte. Paris, 1790. 

A defense in opposition to Brissot's attack of the caisse d'escompte in its 
relations with the national treasury. 

Rouyer. Historique de I'arrestation de Brissot. Le citoyen Rouyer, 
commissaire national du tribunal du district de Moulins et membre 
de la Societe populaire au citoyen Vidalin, depute a la Convention 
nationale par le departement de I'Allier. [Moulins le 11 juin, 1793.] 
In Convention nationale. Recits de la Revolution A. N. a.d. xviii*^ 
241. 

An account drawn up by an eye-witness and in a hostile spirit. 

Saint-Cyran, M. J. Refutation du projet des Amis des Noirs sur la 
suppression de la traite des negres et sur I'abolition d' esclavage dans 
nos colonies. [Paris] 1790. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 493 

De Salm, La Princess Constance. Notice sur la vie, les ouvrages de 
Mentelle. Paris, 1839. 

The most valuable part of this work is a series of extracts from a man- 
uscript of M. Mentelle in which is included an appreciation of Brissot. 

Sergent-Marceau, A. F. Notice historique sur les evenements du 
10 aout et des 20 et 21 juin precedants. In the Revue retrospective, sec- 
ond series, in, 328-46, 

From the point of view of a participant, and of a Montagnard. 

Tarbe, C. Replique a J. P. Brissot sur les troubles de Saint-Do- 
mingue; prononcee a TAssemblee nationale le 22 novembre, 1792. 
Paris, 1792. 

A defense of the policy of the colonial committee and an attack in turn 
on Brissot's colonial policy. 

Theveneau de Morande, Charles. Replique de . . . a Jacques Pierre 
Brissot sur les erreurs, les oublis, les infidelites et les calomnies de sa 
reponse. Paris, 1791. 

Part of the attack made upon Brissot at the time of his candidacy for 
the Legislative Assembly. 

Lettre aux electeurs du departement de Paris sur Jaques 

Pierre Brissot. Paris [3 septembre], 1791. 
See preceding title and note. 

Supplement au No. 25 de L' Argus Patriote. Paris, 6 septem- 
bre, 1791. 

See above. 

Vernay. Lettre a M. Brissot de Warville sur ses Reflexions im- 
portantes relatives aux elections futures des municipalites contenues 
dans le supplement du^no. CLXiv de son journal intitule Le Patriote 
Franqais. Lyon, 1790. 

An attack on Brissot for having inserted in the Patriote Franqais an 
article advising against the election to municipal oflBce of all persons con- 
nected with the old regime. 

Vilate, Joachim. Les Mysteres de la Mere de Dieu devoiles. Paris, 
I'an III. 

Contains some details with regard to the trial and last hours of the 
Girondins. Not altogether reliable. 

Avis d'un depute a ses collegues, sur le discours de M. Brissot, lu 
a la seance du 30 octobre, 1791, concernant une revolte de negres a 
Saint-Domingue. 

A severe criticism of Brissot's position. 



494 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Adresse a Tassemblee nationale. 

Sets forth the dangers to French commerce of the abolition of the slave 
trade. The signers include the names of deputies from Marseilles, Bayonne, 
Bordeaux, Nantes, Rochelle, Saint-Malo, Havre, Dieppe, Dunkirk and 
Lille. 

Amis des Noirs, Societe de. Adresse a rAssemblee nationale pour 
I'abolition de la traite des noirs, par la Societe des Amis des Noirs de 
Paris. 20 fevrier, 1790. 

Signed Brissot, president, Le Page, secretary. While pleading for the 
abolition of the slave trade the society protested against the assumption 
that they were working for the immediate abolition of slavery. Throws 
light on the purposes and aims of the society. 

Seeonde adresse a I'Assemblee nationale, par la Societe des Amis 
des Noirs. 9 avril, 1790. 

Adresse aux amis de I'humanite par la Societe des Amis des Noirs 
sur le plan de ses traveaux. 4 juin, 1790. 

An outline of the methods and work of the Society, signed by Petion as 
president and Brissot as secretary. 

Adresse de la Societe des Amis des Noirs a I'Assemblee nationale, 
a toutes les villes de commerce, a toutes les manufactures, aux colonies, 
a toutes les societes des amis de la constitution; adresse dans laquelle 
on approfondit les relations politiques et commerciales, entre la me- 
tropole, et les colonies, redigee par Claviere. 

A special plea for the extension of civil rights to the mulattoes and a 
general statement of the principles of the society. 

Tableau des membres de la Societe des Amis des Noirs. 

Without date or signature. In Supplement mix proces-verbal de rAs- 
semblee nationale, colonies, tome i; traite des negres, partie ii. A. N., AD^^'", 
C. 115. Of considerable value, as showing the growth and personnel of the 
Amis des Noirs. 

Lettre aux Bailliages de France. [1 dec, 1789.] 

An attack on the Amis des Noirs on the ground that it was an anti- 
patriotic society. 

Reglements de la Societe des Amis des Noirs. 

Drawn up by Condorcet. Printed in article by Leon Cahen, "La SocOti 
des Amis des Noirs et Condorcet," in La Revolution Frangaisi, June, 1906. 

Circulaire de la Societe de la liberte et de I'equalite, seante aux ci- 
devant Jacobins de Paris, rue Saint-Honore. Paris, 1792. 

An explanation, sent to the aflSIiated societies, of the reasons for the ex- 
pulsion of Brissot. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 495 

Considerations presentees aux vrais amis du repos et du bonheur de 
la France a roceasion des nouveaux mouvements de quelques soi- 
disant Amis des Noirs. [1790.] 

Denoneiation de la secte des Amis des Noirs, par les habitants des 
colonies fran^aises [signe: Les Colons assemblees en I'hotel de Mas- 
siac] 

Decouverte d'une conspiration contre les interets de la France. 

Without date or signature. A violent attack on the Amis des Noirs. In 
the same series as the above. They both throw light on the importance of 
the Society. 

Le Diable dans un benitier et la Metamorphose du gazetier 
cuirasse. 

An attack on the police methods of the old regime. For his alleged col- 
laboration with Pelleport in the authorship of his pamphlet, Brissot was 
imprisoned in the Bastille in 1784. it has never been finally settled as to 
who was really the author. 

An inquiry into the cause of the insurrection of the negroes in the 
island of Santo Domingo. London, 1792. 

An English attack on Brissot's colonial policy. 

Flower of the Jacobins, containing biographical sketches of the 
characters at present at the head of affairs in France, dedicated to 
Louis XVI, king of France and Navarre. Third edition. London, 
1793. 

Attacks on Monsieur figalite, Petion, Merlin, Dumouriez, Chabot, 
Carra, Gorsas, Danton, Marat, Condorcet, Robespierre, and Brissot. 

Lettre a MM. les deputes des trois ordres, pour les engager a faire 
nommer par Les Etats Generaux, a I'example des anglais, une com- 
mission chargee d'examiner la cause des noirs [signe: Un ami des 
Noirs]. [Mai, 1789.] 

An argument against the slave trade. 

Lettre de M. . . . a M. Brissot de Warville, president de la Societe 
des Amis des Noirs. [Paris.] 

"Par les deputSs extraordinaires des manvfacturiers et du commerce, en 
faveur du maiiitien de la traite." 

Lettres de la Societe des Amis des Noirs a M. Necker avec la re- 
ponse de ce ministre. Juillet, 1789. 

A protest against certain statements regarding the slave trade, made by 
Necker in his address at the opening of the States-General. 



496 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Lettres des diverses Societes des Amis de la Constitution, qui re- 
clament les droits de citoyen actif en faveur des hommes de couleur 
des colonies [8 mars, ITavril, 1791]. [Paris.] 

For the most part letters addressed to the SociitS des Amis de la Con- 
stitution, at Angers, in response to the circular sent out by that society, 
announcing its plan to present a petition to the National Assembly in 
favor of the mulattoes. 

Liste des ouvrages sur la traite et I'eselavage. [Paris.] 

The same list which was published in the Patriate Frangais of May 7, 
1790. 

Un Mot sur les Noirs, a leurs Amis. 

An argument in favor of slavery, and an attack on the Amis des Noirs, 
on the ground that they were unpatriotic and that they were working 
against the real interests of France. 

Observations du Mercredi, 15 decembre, 1790. 

Opinion de M. Brissot sur quelques idees de M. A. Lameth. 1790. 

A criticism of Brissot's objections to certain remarks of Lameth on the 
relation of the ministry to the legislative body. 

Observations sur un ouvrage de M. Brissot de Warville, 7 decembre, 
1790. 

A quotation from a letter by Brissot with warm commendation of his 
patriotic principles. 

Observations sur un article du journal de M. Brissot de Warville, 
concernant une protestation contre les assignats. 

Unsigned and undated. Evidently by Bergasse, whose name is written 
in the margin. On a previous occasion Bergasse had expressed surprise 
that Claviere should uphold forced assignats. The present pamphlet is an 
answer to Brissot and a further criticism of the dangers of the proposed 
assignats. 

Observations pour servir de reponse aux objections de M. Brissot 
contre la convocation actuelle des assemblees primaires dans son 
opinion du juillet 26. [Paris, 1792.] 

A protest against the suspicion expressed by Brissot, that the partisans 
of the king were favoring the convocation of the primary assemblies, in the 
hope that once called they could be intimidated into taking action favor- 
able to the king. 

Perfidie du systeme des Amis des Noirs. [Nantes, ce 23 fevrier, 
1791.] 

The address closes thus: "lis sont les voeux unanimes et universelles 
de tons les citoyens et individus de la ville de Nantes et tels ne peuvent 
qu'etre ceux de tons les bons et senses Frangais." 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 497 

Reflexions sur la despotisme qu'exercent a Saint-Domingue les 
commissaires nationaux civiles, Polverel and Santhonax. Denoncia- 
tion de ces memes commissaires par le eitoyen sans-reproche, homme 
de couleur, affranchi du citoyeu Page, homme blanc et commissaire de 
Saint-Domingue. 

Allegations against Brissot and the Girondins to the effect that they 
had upheld the policy of Polverel and Santhonax. 

Reponse des deputes de Saint-Domingue aux inculpations de M, 
Brissot, adresse le 5 decembre a M. le president de I'assemblee na- 
tionale. 

Representations a MM. Brissot, I'abbe Audrin, Chabot et les autres 
deputes detracteurs du pouvoir executif. [Paris, 1792.] 

Unsigned and undated. A protest against attacks on the king's min- 
isters. The way to restore dignity to the existing government, the writer 
argued, was not to insult its first agents. 

Sur les troubles des colonies et I'unique moyen d'assurer la tran- 
quillite, le prosperite et la fidelite de ces dependances de I'empire, en 
refutation des deux discours de M. Brissot du 1^' et 3™^ decembre, 
1791. 

An argument that the troubles of the colonies were due to the agitation 
of the slavery question. 

Vie privee et politique de Brissot. Paris, I'an IE. 

A violent attack on Brissot, written, apparently, after his arrest at 
Moulins, June 10, 1793, and just before his trial. It compares him with 
Tartuffe. The pamphlet contains a picture of Brissot. 

Vie secrette et politique de Brissot. Paris, i'an VI. 

A duplicate of the preceding, but with a different title-page. 

S. Memoirs and Letters 

Bailleul, Jacques Charles. Examen critique de I'ouvrage posthume 
de Mme. la Baronne de Stael ayant pour titre, "Considerations sur 
les principaux evenements de la Revolution frangaise." 2 vols. Paris, 
1818. 

Contains an appreciation of Brissot and the Girondins from the point of 
view of a man who had occupied the position of a moderate in the Con- 
vention. It also gives an account of the origin of the term "Brissotin." 

Barbaroux, Charles Jean Marie. Memoires inedites de Petion et 
Memoires de Buzot et de Barbaroux. Dauban, C. A., ed. Paris, 1866. 

Dauban is thoroughly in sympathy with the Girondins. 



A 



498 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Bertrand de Moleville, Antoine Frangois. Memoires particulieres 
pour servir a I'histoire de la fill du regne de Louis XVII. 2 vols. 1816. 

Throws light on the attitude of supporters of the king towards Brissot. 

Crevecoeur, Saint John de. Letters from an American Farmer. 
London, 1782. 

A work of great interest, because of its influence upon Brissot. 

Delacroix, J. L'Intrigue devoilee ou Robespierre venge des ou- 
trages et des calomnies des ambitieux. [Paris,] 1792. 

Contains an attack on Brissot as an adherent of Lafayette. The par- 
tisanship of the writer is evident from the title. 

Dumont, Etienne. Souvenirs sur Mirabeau et sur les deux pre- 
mieres assemblees legislatives, ouvrage posthume public par J. L. 
Duval. Paris, 1832. 

Contains interesting comments on the attitude of Brissot on various 
occasions, which are, however, to be taken with some caution. 

Recollections of Mirabeau and of the two Legislative Assem- 
blies of France. London, 1832. 
A translation of the above. 

Garat, Le Comte, D. J. Memoires sur la Revolution, ou expose de 
ma conduite dans les affaires et dans les fonctions publiques. Paris, 
I'an III. 

Garat was a friend and at the same time a critic of the Girondins. 

Genlis, Madame la comtesse de. Memoires. In Barriere, Biblio- 
theque des Memoires, xv. 1846. 

Unreliable. 

Louvet de Couvrai, Jean Baptiste. Memoires sur la Revolution 
Fran^aise. F. A. Aulard, ed. 2 vols. Paris, 1889. 

Edited from a more unbiased point of view than the previously pub- 
lished memoirs of other Girondins. 

Mallet du Pan, Jacques. Memoires et correspondance de . . . pour 
servir a I'histoire de la Revolution Frangaise, recueillis et mis en ordre 
par A. Sayous. 2 vols. Paris, 1851. 

Hostile to Brissot. 

Meillan. Memoires. Paris, 1823. 
Favorable to the Girondins. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 499 

Riouffe, H. Memoires d'un dfetenu pour servir a rhistoire de la 
tyrannic de Robespierre. Paris, I'an III. 

Gives information as to Brissot's last days in prison. 

Roland, Madame Marie Jeanne Phlipon. Lettres publiees par 
Claude Perroud. In Collection de documents inedits sur I'histoire de 
France. 2 vols. Paris. 1900-02. 

In "Collection de documents inMits sur I'histoire de France, publiSs par 
les soins du ministre de Vinstruction jmblique." A work of most thorough 
scholarship; contains much material upon Brissot and his relation with the 
Roland group. 

Memoires. Publics par Claude Perroud. 2 vols. Paris, 1905. 

A work of the same character as the above; also contains much informa- 
tion as to Brissot. 

Soulavic, J. L. G. Memoires historique et politiques sur le regne de 
Louis XVI, 6 vols. Paris, 1801. 

Not in sympathy with Brissot. 

Williams, Helene Marie. Souvenirs de la Revolution frangaise. 
Jraduit de I'anglais [par C. C.]. Paris, 1827. 

Miss Williams was in sympathy with the Girondin policy and a per- 
sonal friend of many of them. She gives various details as to the family of 
Brissot, but her accounts are not to be relied upon. 

Lettres sur les evenements qui se sont passes en France de- 

puis le 31 mai, 1793, jusqu'au 10 thermidor. Traduites de I'anglais. 
Paris. 

See above. . 

3. Newspapers 

Only those are cited which especially concern Brissot. 

Les Actes des Apotres. November, 1789, to October, 1791. (311 
nos., 11 vols.) L'an de la liberte 0. 

L'Ami du peuple. Ed. par Marat. Sept. 12, 1789, to July 14, 
1793. 

This and the preceding extremely hostile to Brbsot. 

L'Ami du Roi. Parts 1-4. Paris, 1790-92. 
Motto: Pro Deo, Rege et Patria. 



500 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Annales politiques, civiles et litteraires, du dix-huitieme siecle 
ouvrage periodique, par M. Linguet. 19 vols. Londres et Paris, 1777- 
91. 

Decidedly polemic in character, twice suppressed. Brissot was for a 
brief time comiected with this journal. 

L'Aniti-Brissotin. Journal du soir. Du 117 nos. P' brumaire, an 
II, a 27 pluviose, an III. 

Upholds the system of the Terror. 

Le Babillard. Journal du Palais-Royal et des Tuileries. 116 nos. 
[June 5, to Oct. 7, 1791. Paris, 1791.] 

This journal and its successor, Le Chant du Cog, bitterly hostile to 
Brissot. 

Le Babillard et le Chant du Coq. Nos. 117-38. Oct. 8, to Oct. 30, 
1791. Paris, 1791. 

" Le Chant du Coq semblait vl avoir ii6 cr^ que pour mener un campagne 
acharnee centre Brissot." 

La Chronique du mois ou les cahiers patriotiques de E. Claviere, C. 
Condorcet, L. Mercier, A. Auger, J. Oswald, N. Bonneville, J. Bider- 
mann, A. Broussonet, A. Guy-Kersaint, J. P. Brissot, J. Ph. Garran 
de Coulon, J. Dussaulx, F. Lanthenas, et Collot d'Herbois. 5 vols. 
Nov. 1791, to July, 1793. 

La Chronique de Paris. 8 vols. Aug. 24, 1789, to Aug. 25, 1793. 
Moderate, inclined to the side of the Girondins. 

Le Courrier des departements. 47 vols., ed by Gorsas. July 5, 1789, 
to May 31, 1793. 

It appeared under the successive titles of Le Courrier de Versailles a 
Paris, Le Courrier de Paris dans les Provinces, Le Courrier de Paris dans 
les 83 departements, Le Courrier des IXXXlll departements, Le Courrier 
des departements. 

Courrier de I'Europe, gazette anglo-frangais, par Serre de Latour, 
Morande. Brissot, le comte de Montlosier; 32 vols. Londres et Bou- 
logne, 1776-92. 

" Un des recueils les plus importants ci consulter, non seulement pour I'his- 
toire politique, mais encore pour Vhistoire morale et littSraire du siecle dernier. 
Interessant surtout pour Vhistoire des colonies anglais." Hatin, Biblio- 
graphic, 74. 

Gazette nationale ou le Moniteur Universal, du 24 novembre, 1789. 

One of the most valuable sources for the debates in the successive 
Assemblies. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 501 

Le journal general de la cour et de la ville. 15 vols. Sept. 15, 1789, 
to Aug. 10, 1792. 

Hostile to Brissot. 

Journal de Paris. 87 vols. Jan. 1, 1777, to Sept. 30, 1811. 

Inclined to be hostile. 

Le Mercure, 1672-1853. 

During the Revolution, and since, called the Mercure de France. From 
1789 to 1792 of the party of constitutional monarchy. 

The Monthly Review, or Literary Journal, enlarged. 108 vols. Lon- 
don, 1790-1825. 

Contains criticisms of certain of Brissot's works; more or less friendly. 

Le Republieain, ou le Defenseur du gouvernement representatif par 
une societe des republicains [par Condorcet, Thomas Paine et Acliille 
Duchatelet]. [Paris, 1791.] 

The newspaper which represented the sudden and short-lived republican 
movement of the summer of 1791. 

Les Revolutions de France et de Brabant. 86 nos. Nov. 28, 1789, 
to July, 1791. 

Critical, rather than hostile. On several occasions, however, Desmou- 
lins expressed hearty approval of Brissot's conduct. 

Les Revolutions de Paris. 18 vols. July 12, 1789, to Feb. 28, 1794. 

At first rather in sympathy with Brissot, but it did not hesitate to assail 
him particularly for his part in municipal affairs, and as the Revolution 
progressed criticized him more and more severely. 

Le Thermometre du jour. 7 vols. Aug. 11, 1791, to Aug. 25, 1793. 
"An implacable enemy of nobles, priests, and kings." 

C. Collections of Documents 

Aulard, FranQois Alphonse. La Societe des Jacobins. Recueil de 
documents pour I'histoire du club des Jacobins de Paris. 6 vols. Paris, 
1889-97. In Collection de documents relatifs a I'histoire de Paris 
pendant la Revolution frangaise, publiee sous le patronage de Conseil 
municipal. 

ed. Recueil des actes du Comite de salut public avec la 

correspondance oflScielle des representants in mission. 20 vols. 1889- 
1910. 



502 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Challamel, Augustin. Les Clubs contre-revolutionaires, circles, 
comites, societes, salons, reunions, cafes, restaurants et librairies. 
Paris, 1895. 

Charavay, fitienne. Assemblee electorale de Paris. 18 novembre, 
1790, a 15 juin, 1791. Paris, 1890. 

Assemblee electorale de Paris. 26 ao(it 1791, a 12 aofit, 1792. 

Paris, 1890. 

Chassin, Ch. L. Les Elections et les cahiers de Paris en 1789. 4 vols. 
Paris, 1888-89. 

Funck-Brentano, Frantz. Les Lettres de cachet k Paris, fitude 
suivie d'une liste des prisonniers de la Bastille. [1659-1789.] Paris, 
1903. 

Hatin, Eugene. Bibliographic historique et critique de la presse 
periodique frangaise. Paris, 1866. 

Lacroix, Sigismund. Actes de la commune de Paris pendant la 
Revolution, publics et annotes par Sigismund Lacroix. 7 vols. I*' 
serie. 25 juillet, 1789, a 8 octobre, 1790. Paris, 1894-1898. 

Mavidal, J., et Laurent, E. Archives parlementaires de 1787 a 1860. 
Recueil complet des debats legislatifs et politiques des chambres 
frangaises. Premiere serie [1787 a 1799]. Paris, 1879- 

The editing of this work is not of the highest order. It supplements the 
information found in the Moniteur, but it is to be used with some caution. 

Robiquet, Paul. Le Personnel municipal de Paris pendant la Re- 
volution, periode constitutionelle. Paris, 1890. 

Bulletin du tribunal criminel etabli par la loi du 10 mars, 1793, pour 
juger sans appel les conspirateurs. 8 vols. Paris, 1793. 

Contains reports of the trial, drawn up naturally in a spirit hostile to the 
Girondins. 

Proces-verbal de I'Assemblee nationale [legislative]. 16 vols. Paris, 
1791-92. 

Proces-verbal de la convention nationale. 74 vols. Paris, 1792. 
An IV. 

Supplement aux proces-verbal de I'assemblee nationale. Colonies. 
Tome I. Traites des negres. Part ii. 

Browning, Oscar, ed. The dispatches of Earl Gower, English am- 
bassador at Paris from June, 1790, to August, 1792, to which are 
added the dispatches of Mr. Lindsay and Mr. Monro, and the diary 
of Viscount Palmerston in France during July and August, 1791. 
Cambridge, Eng., 1885. 

Contains comments on several of Brissot's speeches. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 503 



D. General Works 

Aulard, F. A. Histoire politique de la Revolution frangaise. Paris, 
1901. 

Very suggestive as to the Girondin policy in general. 

L'Eloquence parlementaire pendant la Revolution frangaise. 

Les Orateurs de la Legislative et de la Convention. 2 vols. Paris, 
1885-86. 

Contains an interesting and suggestive sketch of Brissot. 

Avenel, H. Histoire de la presse frangaise depuis 1789 jusqu'a nos 
jours. Paris, 1900. 

Beaulieu, Claude Frangois. Essais historiques sur les causes et les 
effets de la Revolution de France. 6 vols. Paris, 1801-03. 

From the royalist point of view. 

Belote, T. T. The Scioto Speculation and the French Settlement at 
Gallipolis. In University studies, published by the University of 
Cincinnati; series ii; vol. ii, 103. Cincinnati, 1907. 

Bire, Edmond. La Legende des Girondins. Paris, 1881. 

Extremely hostile to the Girondins and to the Revolution. 

Biernawski, Louis. Un Departement sous la Revolution frangaise, 
L'Allier de 1789 a I'an HI. Moulins, 1909. 

Contains material on arrest of Brissot. 

Buchez, P. J. B., et Roux, P. C. Histoire parlementaire de la Re- 
volution frangaise ou Journal des assemblees nationales depuis 1789 
jusqu'en 1815. 40 vols. Paris, 1834-38. 

Especially valuable for the clues which it gave to the contemporary 
journalistic opinion. 

Bourne, H. E. The Revolutionary Period in Europe, 1789-1815. 
New York, 1904. 

A brief but scholarly treatment of the whole period. 

Cahen, Leon. Condorcet et la Revolution frangaise. Paris, 
1904. 

Valuable information on relations between Condorcet and Brissot. 
Well documented. 



V 



504 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Campardon, Emile. Le Tribunal revolutionaire de Paris. Ouvrage 
compose d'apres les documents originaux conserves aux Archives de 
I'Empire, suivi de la liste complete des personnes qui ont comparu 
devant le tribunal. 2 vols. Paris, 1866. 

Gives an account of the trial of the Girondins. Hostile to the tribunal 
and in sympathy with the accused. 

Charpentier, ( ). La Bastille devoilee ou Recueil de pieces au- 
thentiques pour servir k son histoire. 3 vols. Paris, 1789-90. 

Par Charpentier, d'apres Barbier. Par Louis Pierre Manuel, d'apres M. 
Girraud. [Note in catalogue of Bibliotheque Nationale.] Contains a state- 
ment that Brissot received the keys of the Bastille. 

Claretie, Arsene Jules. Desmoulins, Lucile Desmoulins, etude sur les 
Dantonistes, d'apres des documents nouveaux, et inedite. Paris, 1875. 
Contains information as to the relations of Brissot and Desmoulins. 

Clarkson, Thomas. The History of the Rise, Progress, and Accom- 
plishment of the Abolition of the African Slave Trade, by the British 
Parliament. 2 vols. London, 1808. 

One of the most valuable sources for the history of the Amis des Noirs. 

Cornillon, J. Le Bourbonnais sous la Revolution frangaise. S vols. 
Moulins, 1889-91. 

Contains information on conditions at Moulin at time of Brissot's 
arrest. 

Crevecoeur, Robert de. Saint John de Crevecoeur, sa vie et ses 
ouvrages [1735-1813]. Paris, 1883. 

Gives interesting information as to the relations of Brissot with Creve- 
coeur. 

Dard, Emile. Un Acteur cache du drame revolutionaire, le general 
Choderlos de Laclos, acteur des "Liaisons dangereuses," 1741-1803, 
d'apres des documents inedits. Paris, 1905. 

Contains information as to the part played by Brissot in the republican 
crisis of July, 1791. 

Duchatellier, A. R. Histoire de la Revolution dans les departements 
de I'ancienne Bretagne. 6 vols. Paris, 1836. 

Feuillet de Conches, F. Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette et Madame 
Elizabeth. Lettres et documents inedits. 6 vols. Paris, 1864-73. 

Much of the material contained in the first two volumes is of doubtful 
authenticity. The last four volumes are less open to question. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 505 

Fleury, Ed. Camille Desmoulins et Roch Marcandier. 2 vols. 
Paris, 1851. 

Made up largely of quotations, not very critical, favorable to Des- 
moulins. 

Gallois, Leonard. Histoire des journaux et des journalistes de la 
Revolution fran^aise, 1789-96. 2 vols. Paris, 1845-46. 

Contains a suggestive sketch of the Patriate Frangais. 

Glagau, Hans. Die franzosische Legislative und der Ursprung der 
Revolutionskriege, 1791-92. Berlin, 1896. In Historische Studien. 

Based in part on the Austrian archives. 

Goetz-Bernstein, H. A. La Diplomatie de la Gironde. Jacques 
Pierre Brissot. Paris, 1912. 

A thorough and well-documented study. 

Gomel, Charles. Histoire financiere de I'Assemblee constituante. 
2 vols. 1896-97. 

Histoire financiere de la Legislative et de la Convention. 

2 vols. 1902-05. 

Goupil, Paul. La Propriete selon Brissot de Warville. These pour 
le doctorat. Paris, 1904. 

Emphasizes Brissot's inconsistency and his debt to Rousseau. 

Granier de Casagnac, A. Histoire des Girondins et des massacres \/ 
de Septembre d'apres les documents officials et inedits. 2 vols. Paris, 
1860. 

One of the first studies of the Girondins from a comparatively unbiased 
point of view. 

Guadet, Joseph. Les Girondins, leur vie privee, leur vie publique, 
leur proscription et leur mort. 2 vols. Paris, 1861. 

As the title suggests, — a eulogy. 
Hatin, Eugene. Histoire du journal en France. Paris, 1846. 

Includes information on the beginnings of the Patriate Frangais. 
Herissay, Jacques. Un Girondin, Frangois Buzot. Paris, 1907. 

A successful attempt to make vivid the personality of Buzot. 

Herrmann, Dr. Ernst. Diplomatische Correspondenzen aus der 
Revolutionszeit, 1791-97. Gotha, 1867. 

Abstracts and translation of dispatches dealing largely with the out- 
break of war. 



506 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Jaures, J. La Constituante, 1901, La Legislative, 1902. La Conven- 
tion; 2 vols.; 1903. In Histoire Socialiste, 1789-1900, sous la direction 
de Jean Jaures et coUaborateurs. 

Contains material indicating Brissot's interest in economic matters. 
From the point of view of a socialist. 

V^ Kropotkin, Pierre. La Grande Revolution, 1789-93. Paris, 1909. 

Attacks the Girondins on the ground that they represent the bourgeois 
point of view in hostility to the proletariat. 

Lomenie, Louis Leonard, et Charles de. Les Mirabeaux, nouvelles 
etudies sur la societe frangaise au 18°*^ siecle. 5 vols. Paris, 1885-91. 
Throws light on the early relations between Brissot and Mirabeau. 
Masson, Frederic. Le Departement des aflPaires etrangeres pendant 
la revolution, 1787-1804. Paris, 1877. 
Based on documents. 
Mathiez, A. Le Club de Cordeliers. Paris, 1910. 

Mills, Herbert Elmer. The Early Years of the French Revolution 
in Santo Domingo. Poughkeepsie, 1892. 

Monin. L'Etat de Paris en 1789. Paris, 1881. 

Morellet, L'Abbe Andre. Melanges de litterature et de philosophic 
du 18™« siecle. 4 vols. Paris, 1818. 

Contains a criticism of some of Brissot's literary work. 

Pallain, G., ed. La Mission de Talleyrand a Londres, en 1792. 
Paris, 1889. 

Information on Brissot's attitude toward foreign affairs. 
Pfeiffer, L. B. The Uprising of June 20, 1792. 

A scholarly study. 
Robiquet, Paul. Th^veneau de Morande. Paris, 1882. 

Throws light on one of Brissot's most bitter adversaries, and on the 
libelists of the old regime, with whom Brissot came in contact during his 
stay in London in 1784. 

Rose, J. H. William Pitt and the Great War. London, 1911. 

Sagnac, Ph. La Legislation civile de la Revolution frangaise. Paris, 
1890. 

Seligman, E. La Justice en France pendant la Revolution frangaise. 
Paris, 1901. 

Sorel, Albert. L'Europe et la Revolution frangaise. 8 vols. Paris, 
1885-1904. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 507 

Sybel, H. von. The French Revolution. 4 vols. London, 1867-69. 

Ternaux, Mortimer. Histoire de la Terreur, 1792-94, d'apres des 
documents authentiques et inedits. 7 vols. Paris, 1862-69. 
Contains documents bearing on Brissot. 

Vatel, Charles. Charlotte de Corday, et les Girondins, pieces clas- 
sees et annotees. 2 vols. Paris, 1864-72. 

Contains a Notice sur Brissot, by Petion, of special value on many points 
of his early life. Petion apparently derived much of his information di- 
rectly from Brissot himself. 

Vergniaud, Manuscrits, lettres et papiers, pieces pour la plu- 

part inedites. 2 vols. Paris, 1873. 

Contains several important documents bearing on Brissot, not accessi- 
ble elsewhere. 

Vaultier, F. Souvenirs de I'insurrection normande dite du fede- 
ralisme en 1793, publiees pour la premiere fois, avec notes et pieces 
justificative, par M. Georges Mangel. Caen, 1858. 

Wallon, Henri Alexandre. Histoire de Tribunal revolutionaire de 
Paris, avec le journal de ses actes. 6 vols. Paris, 1880-82. 
Favorable to the Girondins. 

La Revolution de 31 mai et le federalisme en 1793, ou la 

France vaincue, par la commune de Paris. 2 vols. Paris, 1886. 

Washington, George. Writings, ed. by Ford. 14 vols. New York, 
1889-93. 

Wilberforce, R. I. and S., editors. Life of William Wilberforce, by 
his sons. London, 1838. 

E. Magazine Articles 

Aulard, Frangois Alphonse. Formation du parti republicain. In 
La Revolution Frangaise, for 1898, xxxv, 296-347. 

Bourne, Henry E. American Constitutional Precedents in the 
French National Assembly. In the American Historical Review, April, 
1903, VIII, 466-86. 

Cahen, Leon. La Societe des Amis des Noirs et Condorcet. In La 
Revolution Franqaise, June, 1906, pp. 481-511. 

Chamberland, ( ). A propos de Brissot [le conventionnel ne k 
Chartres en 1754]. In Proces-Verbaux de la Societe archeologique 
d'Eure-et-Loire. [Chartres.] 1901, x, 121-23. 

Denos, G. Etude sur la maison dite de Brissot a Chartres. In Pro- 
ces-verbaux de la Societe archeologique d'Eure-et-Loire. [Chartres,] 
1901, X, 163-69. 



508 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Faguet, Emile. Une histoire de la Revolution frangaise. In La 
Revue des Deux Mondes, 1 aoiit, 1901, fifth period, iv, 631-59. 

Manning, W. R. The Nootka Sound Controversy. In the Annual 
Report of the American Historical Association, 1904. 

Perroud, A. Brissot de les Rolands. In La RSvolution Franqaise, 
mai, 1898, xxxiv, 403-22. 

La Famille de Madame Brissot in La Revolution Frangaise, 

Lix, 270-74, Sept. 14, 1910. 

Sur I'authenticite des Memoires de Brissot. In La RSvolu- 
tion Frangaise, aout, 1904, xlvii, 121-34. 

UnProjet de Brissot pour une association agricole. In La 

RSvolution Frangaise, mars, 1902, xlii, 260-65. 

Sorel, Albert. Un General diplomate. In La Revue des Deux Mon- 
des, juin 15, aoAt 1, aoM 15, 1884, third period, lxiv, 302-32, 575-606, 
789-829. 

Turner, Frederick J. The origin of Genet's Projected Attack on 
Louisiana and the Floridas. In the American Historical Review, July, 
1898, m, 650-71. 

Documents on the Relations of France to Louisiana, 1792-95. 

In the American Historical Review, April, 1898, iii, 490-516. 

L'lntermediaire des Chercheurs et des Curieux. Article signed 
G. D., Oct. 10, 1891, XXIV, 777. 

Gives information as to the descendants of Brissot. 

L'lntermediaire des Chercheurs et des Curieux, xxili; 707; xxiv, 
62. Inquiry signed L. C. Answer signed Maurice Tourneux. 

Inquiry and answer covering an alleged letter of the Baron Grim, as- 
serting that Brissot had been a police spy. 

The Monthly Review, xxxvi, 593, and vi (enlarged series), 531-43. 
Book reviews of De la France and Le Nouveau Voyage. 



INDEX 



INDEX 



Abbaye (prison), 363, 367-368. 

Ades des Apotres, 107, 120, 212 n., 217, 
243 n., 447 n. 

Adams, John, 25, 69, 74. 

Adams, Samuel, 75. 

Adelaide, Madame, 21 n. 

Albany, 410. 

Alembert (d'), 13, 19 n., 21. 

Alexandria, 435. 

Allais, 162. 

Allier, Department of the, 352-353 
notes. 356-357 notes, 358-359 notes, 
361-362 notes. 

Alsace, 227 n. 

Amar, 369, 371, 372, 377. 

America. See United States. 

Ami du Peuple, 119-120, 224 n., 
271 n., 333, 357 n. 

Ami du Roi, 217, 234 and n., 276. 

Amis des Noirs, Brissot's part in 
founding, 1-2, 40, 67, 96; connec- 
tion with like societies in America, 
78; addresses of, sent to mimicipal 
assembly, 105-106; mentioned, 121; 
incentive to organization of, 182- 
184; assistance given to, by Mira- 
beau, 183-185 and n., 193-194 and 
notes; first meeting of, 184-185; 
first president of, 185; efiForts of 
Brissot to secure members for, 186; 
assistance given to, by Lafayette, 
186-187; connection of, with Con- 
dorcet, 187; constitution of, 187- 
188; condition of, diu-ing Brissot's 
absence in America, 189; address 
of, on opening of the States-Gen- 
eral, 189 and n.; relation of, to aboli- 
tion of slave trade, 189-190, 197- 
199; letter of, to deputies, 190; as- 
sistance of Clarkson to, 190-194 and 
notes; plans of, 191-192; opposition 
to, of Club de Massiac, 194, 196; re- 
lation of, to States-General, 195- 
201 and notes; relation of, to ad- 
mission of deputies from Santo- 
Domingo to States-General, 195-196 
and notes; relation of, to admission 



of mulattoes to rights of citizenship, 
196-197, 200-201, 208-212; rela- 
tion of, to self-government of colo- 
nies, 196, 199-201; efforts of Brissot 
to interest the municipal govern- 
ment of Paris in work of, 197, 198 w. ; 
attitude of, toward immediate aboli- 
tion of slavery, 198; address of, to 
National Assembly, 198 and n., 200, 
and n.; attitude of, toward decrees 
of March 8 and October 12, 1790, 
199-203; opposition to, 203-205, 
212-215; attitude of, toward decree 
of May 15, 1791, 206-212; accusa- 
tions against Brissot as leader of, 
212-215; Brissot's reputation as 
leader of, 217; list of members of, 
442-447. 

Amsterdam, 317, 436. 

Andover, 69 n. 

Angers, Jacobin Society of, 206. > 

Anthoine, 288. 

Antiquarian Society Papers, quoted, 
66, 71, 72, 73, 85, 221, 399 n., 433- 
434. 

Antonelle, 382 n., 383. 

Antwerp, 317. 

Arbaud, M. Paul, 34 n. 

Argental (d'), 21 and n. 

Argenteuil, rue d', 379, 381. 

Argus Patriote, 217-218. 

Artois, Count d', 274-275, 294. 

Assembly, National (first), mentioned, 
98, 102-104, 109-110, 118-119, 
121 n.. 123-124, 132, 139-145, 147- 
149, 153-154, 156, 158, 168, 170- 
171, 180, 191, 197-210, 212, 217. 

Avignon, 142, 143 n., 417. 

Aublay, M., 401. 

Aublay (Madame). See Dupont, 
Nancy. 

Auger, 120 n. 

August 10, work of Assembly after, 
293-302. 

Aulard, F. A., quoted, 56 and n., 78 n., 
125 n., 161, 175, 194 n., 232 n., 281, 
300 n., 324 n., 417-418, 422, 427 n. 



512 



INDEX 



Austria, 236, 239-24fO, 250-251, 272, 
275, 284, 302, 317, 339, 374. 

"Austrian Committee," 272-275 and 
notes, 379-380, 423. 

Auvergne, 272 n. 

Babillard, Le, 217, 218 n., 222 and n. 

Baillard, 426 and n. 

Bailly, 96, 104, 138, 179, 357 n., 379- 
380. 

Bale, 313. 

Bangal des Issarts, 121 and n., 144 n., 
151, 161, 172, 175 n., 202 n., 253. 

Barbaroux, 324 n., 327, 334. 

Barbier, 243 n. 

Barentin, 445 n. 

Barere, 336, 368 n., 369. 

Barett, 435. 

Barlow, Joel, 86. 

Barnave, 42 n., 135, 181, 200, 201 and 
n., 202, 213 n., 309. 

Barthelemy, 354. 

Bastille, imprisonment of Brissot in, 
24, 27, 29, 32-33, 368, 392; men- 
tioned, 97 and n., 98, 203, 332, 368. 

Bayonne, 360. 

Bazire, 328. 

Beau, 352, 354 n. 

Beaugency, 379. 

BeauUeu, 219 and n. 

Beaumarchais, 30 n., 53, 399. 

Beaupoil Saint-Aulaire, 186 and n. 

Beauvais de Preau, 451. 

Beccaria, 45, 56. 

Becquet, 247, 251. 

Belgium, 252, 316-317, 329-331, 375. 

Bentham, Jeremy, 25 and n., 391 n. 

Benzelin, 275 n. 

Bergasse, Nicholas, 37 and n., 38 and 
n., 152. 

Berlin, 54, 250, 320, 439. 

Bemardin, de Saint Pierre, 186, 197 n. 

Beme, 22, 313. 

Berne, Economic Society of, 14. 

Bertrand de Moleville, 141 and n., 
273-274 and notes, 287. 

Besangon, Academy of, 19 n., 20 n. 

Beverly, 69 n. 

Bexon, 140. 

Bibliotheque, Section of. See Muni- 
cipality. 

Biderman, 120 n., 420. 

Bigot de Preameneu, 451. 

Billaud-Varennes, 300, 360. 



Blanchelande, 209, 449-450. 

Blot, 7 and n., 8, 39, 121, 151. 

Boileau, 383. 

Bonconseil, Section of, 333. 

Bonne-Carrere, 265, 280 and n., 291 n. 

Bonneville, 120 n., 121 n. 

Bordeaux, 152, 162, 203 and n., 213 
380-381. 

Bosc, 121 and n., 122, 367. 

Boston, 69 and n., 71-72, 74-75. 

Bouille, Marquis de, 158-159, 169 n. 

Boulogne, 14-16, 387 and n., 388, 398, 
401. 

Bourbon, 314. 

Bourbon, He de, 250, 

Bourdon, 378 and n. 

Bourges, 336. 

Brabant, 237, 284. 

Brach, 186 and n. 

Breteuil, 30 n., 32. 

Brienne, 51, 187. 

Brissot, Jacques Pierre, reasons for 
writing the life of, 1-3; reputation 
at the beginning of the Revolution, 
1; reasons why biography has not 
been written, 1-3; early writings 
permeated with revolutionary doc- 
trines, 2; parentage, 4; birth, 4 and 
n.; name, 4 and n.; baptism, 4; love 
of study and reading, 4-6, 7; inter- 
est of mother of, in his studies, 4-6; 
opposition of father of, to education 
of children, 4-5, 6; brothers and sis- 
ters of, 4 and n., 5; schooling, 5-6; 
choice of legal profession, 6; trea- 
tise of, on canon law, 7; Rome dS- 
masquS, 7; essay on theft and prop- 
erty, 7 ; study of languages, 7 ; 
thoughts of marriage, 7-8, 16; re- 
ligious experience, 8-10; reading of 
Rousseau, Voltaire, and Diderot, 
8-9; conversion to deism, 9; Lettres 
philosophiques sur la vie et les Scrits 
de Saint Paul, 9 and n., 25, 41-42, 
120 n.; opposition to family on 
matters of religion, 9-10; aspira- 
tion for a career in Paris gratiried, 
10-11; addition of "de Warville" 
to name, 10 and n., 11; arrival in 
Paris, 11 and n.; life in Paris, 11-14; 
plans for presentation of plays in 
foreign languages, 11; devotion to 
a literary career in company with 



INDEX 



513 



Guillard, 11-12; difficulty in gain- 
ing livelihood, 12; Le Pot pourri, 12; 
threat of lettre de cachet, 12; illness, 
12; plans for reform of laws and legal 
institutions, 13-14, 19-21; Theorie 
des lots criminelles, 13-14, 18-19; 
45-47 and notes, 52, 54 n., 55, 372; 
Testament politique de I'Angleterre, 
13; Pyrrhonisme universelle, 13; writ- 
ings on laws and political institu- 
tions, 13, 18-20, 25, 36-37, 49-55; 
employment by Swinton on the 
Courrier, 13-15; dismissal by Swin- 
ton, 15; Reponse a tous les libellistes, 
quoted, 14, 30, 32-33, 49, 53-54, 68, 
220-221 notes; unsuccessful appli- 
cation to father for aid, 15-16; re- 
turn to Paris, 16; work for Linguet, 
16; death of father, 17; legacy from 
father, 17; insanity of mother, 17; 
scientific study, 17; interest in Ma- 
rat, 17; resumption of study for the 
bar and final abandonment of a legal 
career, 18; winning of prizes on sub- 
ject of legal reform, 19-20; S'il etait 
dudesindemnites, 19; Quellespourrai- 
ent etre en France les lois penales, 19; 
Des funesies ejfets de Vegoisme, 19 «.; 
Un Independant a I'ordre des arocats, 

19, 47 n., 52, 55 and n., Biblothcque 
philosophique, 19 n., 20, 36, 44-46 
and notes, 49-50 notes, 52, 55 and n., 
57, 133 and n., 372; De la Verite, 19- 

20, 52; Histoire universelle de la legis- 
lation criminelle, 20; establishment 
and failure of the Lycee, 20-21, 25- 
30, 33 and n., 219; journey 'to Swit- 
zerland, 21; engagement, 18, 389; 
marriage, 22-23, 389; Le Philadel- 
phien a Geneve, 22, 25, 50 n., 52; 
connection in London with libel 
writers, 23-24; acquaintance in 
London with men and women of 
note, 24-26; joined in London by 
wife, 25, 390-391; trouble with 
Desforges, 25, 30, 391; La Corre- 
spondance, 26, 29, 52, 53 n., 54, 113, 
372; Tableau exact des sciences et 
des arts en Angleterre, 26, 54, 372, 
391; Tableau des Indes, 26, 52-53; 
birth of a son, 26, 391-392; arrest 
for debt and release, 27, 391-392; 
departure for France, 27, 392; arrest 
and imprisonment in the Bastille, 



27, 392; Lettre aux Slecturs, 28 n., 
220 n.; Journal de Lycee, 29; Repli- 
que de Brissot, 29, 220, 221, 222 
notes; accusations against of impli- 
cation in libels, 30-33; release from 
Bastille through efforts of friends, 
32, 392; accusation of responsibil- 
ity for Le Diable dans un benitier, 
30-32, 321; help received from Cla- 
viere and from mother-in-law, 33; 
birth of second child, 33 and n., 395; 
financial difficulties, 34; collabora- 
tion with Claviere in work for Mira- 
beau, 34; work for Mirabeau, 34-36; 
collaboration in Caisse d'escompie, 
34; collaboration in the Banque de 
Saint Charles, 34; trouble with 
Mirabeau over manuscript, 35 and 
n., L'AutoritS legislative de Rome 
aneantie, 36, 41, 147; translation of 
Travels in Europe, in Asia, and in 
Africa, 36 and n.; Un Defenseur du 
Peuple a I'Empereur Joseph II, 36 
and n., 53 n., 55; Lettre a V Emperenr 
sur VAtrocite des supplices, 36 and 
n., 55, 372; L'Examen critique des 
voyages dans V Amerique septention- 
ale de M. le Marquis de Chatellux, 
36 and n., 52, 55 and n., 59-60; in- 
terest in scientific studies, 37 and 
71. ; plans for the Societe Gallo-Ameri- 
caine, 37; Denonciation au public 
d'un nouveau projet d'agiotage, 37 
and n.; Seconde lettre contre la com- 
pagnie d' assurance, 37 and n., con- 
nection with Bergasse in political 
reform, 38; work for the Duke of 
Orleans, 38-39; Point de banque- 
route, 37 and n., 50 n., 51, 53 n., 183; 
Lettresphilosophiques et politique s sur 
Vhistoire de L" Angleterre, 37 and n., 
372, 383; Un mot aux academiciens, 
37; De la France et des Etats-Unis, 
37, 48 and n., 52, 55 and n., 63-66 
and notes, 69, 90, 121; attitude 
toward republicanism and dethrone- 
ment, 38, 128, 165, 258-255, 269, 
181, 276-292, 363-366, 371-374. 
379-380, 412-413, 419; threat of 
lettre de cachet, 39; visit to England 
and Holland, 39 and n.; Recherckes 
philosophiques sur la propriety et le 
vol, 43-44, 46 n., 266-267; work 
against the slave trade, 40, 59-60; 



514 



INDEX 



influences seen in early writings, 41 ; 
subjects of early writings, 41-48; 
Moyens d'adoucir en France la 
rigueuT des lois penales, 45-47 and 
notes, 49; Le Sang innocent venge, 
45-47 and notes, 55; writings on 
the United States, 48-50; Observa- 
tions d'un republicain, 50, 148, 164; 
ideal for universal brotherhood, 52- 
53, 419, 427; trouble with the cen- 
sorship, 53-416; opinion concerning 
rights of Jews, 53, 146, 416; anony- 
mous publications, 54; style of 
writing, 56; significance of early 
writings in connection with later 
career, 57-58; criticism of writings 
of by Monthly Renew, 66 n.; jour- 
ney to America, 66-90; Republique 
a Stanislas Chermont, 68 n., 84 n.; 
Nouveau Voyage, 69 n., 70-84 notes, 
90 n.; reasons for publication of 
Nouveau Voyage, 88, 90, 315; rela- 
tion to federalism, 90, 172, 342- 
356, 379-380, 412, 414, 419; return 
to France, 91; at opening of the 
States-General, 91-96; failure of 
election to the States-General, 95- 
96; work as a municipal politician, 
91-112; Plan de conduite, 92-94, 
124, 135, 148, 165; Observations siir 
la necessite d'etablir . . . des comiies 
de correspondance, 93 and n., 127 n.; 
Discours prononce au district des 
Filles-Saint-Thomas, 94 n., 100 n.; 
PrScis adresse a Vassemblee ginerale 
des electeurs de Paris pour servir a 
la redaction "des doleances de cette 
ville, 94 n., 95; Motifs des commis- 
saires pour adopter le plan de muni- 
cipalitc, 99 : Observations surle plan de 
munieipalite de Paris, 99 n.; Opinion 
. . . sur la question de savoir si Paris 
sera le centre d'un departement, 101 
n.; opinion on questions of finance, 
102-104, 147-149, 151-154,265-266, 
359 and n.; opinion on ecclesiastical 
questions, 102-103, 111-112; 144- 
147, 259-261; 296; Motion sur la 
necessite de circonscire la vente des 
biens ecclesiastiques aux municipalir- 
tis, 103, 111 n.; Discours sur la 
rarete du numeraire et sur les moyens 
d'y remedier, 104 n., 152 n.; interest 
in development of local govern- 



ment, 105; Discours prononci & la 
section de la Bibliotheque dans son 
assemblee generate . . . sur la ques- 
tion du renvoi des ministres, 104 n.; 
Reflexions sur I'etat de la Societe 
des electeurs patriotes sur ses travaux, 
sur les formes propres d faire de 
bonnes elections, 105 n.; Rapport 
dans Vaffaire de MM. Dhosier et 
Petit-Jean, 108 7i.; A Stanislas 
Clermont, 108 n., 109 n.; Replique a 
Stanislas Clermont, 109 n.; Lettre a 
M. le Chevalier de Pange, 109 n.; 
work as editor of the Patriote Fran- 
qais, 113-181; Discours sur V or- 
ganisation de comites, 119 n.; A tous 
les republicains de France, 121 Ji., 
346; Discours sur les conventions, 
133 n.; opinion on foreign afifairs, 
142-143, 295; attitude toward de- 
mocracy, 159-165, 180-181, 259, 
324, 325-327, 414-417; attitude 
toward women, 162; attitude toward 
socialistic ideas, 162-163, 416; La 
profession de foi sur la monarchie et 
sur la republicainisme, 173-175; 
Discours sur la question de savoir si 
le roi peut etre jugS, 175-177 and 
notes, 231 and n.; attitude toward 
Lafayette, 180, 193 and n., 224, 241, 
268-269, 276, 289, 296, 308-309, 
337, 357 n., 370 and n., 378-380; 
relation to the Societe des Amis des 
Noirs, 182-215; Discours sur la 
necessite d'etablir a Paris une so- 
ciete pour concourir avec celle du 
Londres, a I'abolition de la traite et 
de I'esclavage des negres, 185; Me- 
moire sur les noirs de I'AmSrique 
septentrionale, 189 and n.; Reflexions 
sur I'admission aux Etats-Generaiix 
des dSputSs de Saint-Domingue, 196 
and n.; Discours sur la nScessite de 
maintenir le decret rendu le 15 mai 
1791 enfaveur des hommes de cotdeur 
libres, 207 and n.; election to the 
Legislative Assembly, 216-224, 451; 
accusations against at time of can- 
didacy, 217-223; comments made on 
election of Brissot, 224; address on 
receiving the election, 224-225; posi- 
tion of in the Legislative Assembly, 
225-226, 258; Discours sur l' organi- 
sation des comites, 226 and n. ; elected 



INDEX 



515 



one of secretaries of the Legislative 
Assembly, 226; membership in Dip- 
lomatic Committee of Legislative 
Assembly, 226-227, 229, 375; advo- 
cacy of foreign war, 230-257; rela- 
tion to Jacobin Club, 232-234, 236; 
Discours sur la necessite de declarer 
la guerre, 233 and n. ; Second discours 
sur la necessite de faire la guerre, 
238 n.; Troisieme discourse sur la 
necessite de la guerre, 241 n.; attacks 
on, because of his advocacy of war, 
242-244 and notes, 271-272; attack 
on Delessart, 243-249 and notes, 
261-262, 375, 379-381; efforts to ob- 
tain foreign alliance, 256, 317-318; 
Replique a la premiere et derniere 
lettre de Louis Martke Gouy, 254 and 
n.; Discours sur la nScessite de sus- 
pendre momentanement le paiement 
des liquidations au-dessus de 3000 I., 
259 n. ; opinion on ecclesiastical ques- 
tions, 259-261; opinion on financial 
questions, 259 and n.; leader of 
Girondins, 261-266 and notes, 281- 

291, 419-421; attitude on discipline, 
265-266; attacks on, 266-272, 280 
and n.; attack on "Austrian Com- 
mittee," 272-275 and notes, 379- 
380; Premiere lettre d, Dumouriez, 
280; wavering attitude toward mon- 
archy, 280-291, 412-413, 419; atti- 
tude toward events of June 20, 281- 
282 and notes; Discours sur les causes 
des dangers de la patrie et sur les 
mesures a prendre, 284 n.; Opinion 
sur les mesures de^ police generate 
proposies par M. Gensonne, 286 n.; 
Opinion sur la marche a suivre en 
examinant la question de la decheance 
et les autres mesures. 286 n., attitude 
toward events of August 10, 291- 

292, 294-295, 363, 379-381, 412- 
483; attitude toward second Giron- 
din ministry, 292 and n.; work as 
member of the Committee of Twen- 
ty-one of the Legislative Assembly, 
292-294 and notes, 296, 298, 301- 
302, 414; attitude toward Swiss 
troops, 294 and n. ; address to foreign 
powers, 295; Projet de declaration de 
r Assemblee nationale, 295 n.; atti- 
tude toward the Commime of Pa- 
ris, 296-303 and notes; accusation 



against, of plotting to put upon the 
throne the Duke of York or the 
Duke of Brunswick, 300 and n., 363, 
412; accusation of, for connection 
with the massacres of September, 
301, 380-381, 413^14; election to 
Convention, 303-304; member of 
the Committee on the Constitution, 
304, 324 n.; member of the Diplo- 
matic Committee, 304, 316-317, 342, 
376; attitude toward the abolition of 
royalty, 304, 305, 332, 363, 379-380. 
412-413; opposition to centraliza- 
tion, 306-307, 350; support given 
to Buzot against Jacobins, 307; A 
Tous les ripuhlicains de France, 308; 
support given to Dumouriez, 310, 
413; attitude toward revolutionary 
propanganda and annexations, 310- 
312 and notes; A ses Commettans, 
311 and n.; attitude toward Swiss 
cantons and Geneva, 312-314; atti- 
tude toward Spain, 314; attitude 
toward Spanish America and fur- 
therance of Genet's expedition, 314- 
316 and notes; member of the Com- 
mittee of General Defense, 316 and 
n., 318-320; attitude toward Com- 
mittee of Public Safety, 316 n., 328; 
attitude toward opening of the 
Scheldt, 316-319, 376; attitude 
toward war with England, 317-324, 
439-441, 452; attitude on king's 
trial and death, 317-318, 321-324, 
419; attack on, as alleged royalist, 
328; attacks on, as leader of the 
Girondins, 328-332; attempt of 
Dan ton to conciliate, 331; attack 
on, for alleged conspiracy with 
Dumouriez, 332-333; accusation of 
having accumulated wealth, 333 and 
n.; attack on Marat, 334; defense 
against attacks of sections of Paris 
and of Robespierre, 335; Sur la de- 
nonciation de Robespierre et sur I'ad- 
dresse pretee aux quarante-huit sec- 
tions de Paris, 335 n.; attack on 
Mountain in pamphlet, A ses Com- 
mettans, 337-341 and notes; accusa- 
tion of being an Orleanist, 337, 412- 
413; expulsion from the Conven- 
tion, 341-342, 350-352; refuge at 
house of Meillan, 351-352; flight 
from Paris to Versailles, 352; flight 



516 



INDEX 



in company with Souque to Chartres, 
352; cold reception at Chartres, 
353; flight toward Orleans, 353; ar- 
rest and examination at Moulins, 
354r-355; confession of identity, 355; 
appeal to the Convention, 356-358; 
connection with district of Gannat, 
358-359; help offered to by Mar- 
chena, 360; hostile demonstration 
against at Moulins, 356-357; trans- 
portation back to Paris, 361-362; 
imprisonment at Paris, 362-363; ar- 
raignment with other Girondins by 
Saint Just, 362-364; answer to ar- 
raignment of Saint Just, 364-367; 
responsibility of Brissot for war, 366, 
370-371, 374-376; appeals while in 
prison to the Convention, 368-369; 
mdictment of, by Amar, 369-371; 
relation to colonial policy, 371-375, 
379-380, 413-418, 448-450; Projet 
de defense, 371-376; accusations 
against, 376-377, 448-450; promi- 
nence in trial as leader of the Giron- 
dins, 377; preliminary examination, 
377; choice of lawyer, 377; witness 
against, 378; testimony against at 
trial, 379-380; defense at trial, 380- 
381; value of defense, 381; verdict 
against, 383-384; last hours and 
execution 384-386 and notes; family 
life, 387-403; proposal for hand of 
Swin ton's daughter, 388; relation 
with wife's family, 398-402; in gen- 
eral principles a typical Girondin, 
4 1 2-419 ; difference from other Giron- 
dins in wider outlook and greater 
cosmopolitanism, 417, 427; in re- 
gard to the other Girondins how far 
a leader, 419-421; divergent views 
as to fitness for leadership, and 
character, 421; appearance, 426. 
See also Amis des Noirs, Mimicipal- 
jty. Patriate Franqais, and United 
States. 

Brissot, Edme, Augustine, Sylvain, 
393, 408-410. 

Brissot, Felix, 393, 399, 410. 

Brissot, Jacques, Jer6me, Anacharsis, 
393, 410 and n. 

Brissot, Madame. See Felicite. 

Brissotins, 225, 235, 249, 301-303, 
309, 330; Histoire de, 336-337, 420- 
422. 



Bristol, 69 n. 

Britain, 318. 

Brookfield, 69 n. 

Brother-in-law, Brissot's. See Du- 

pont, Frangois. 
Broussonet, 120 n., 451. 
Brunswick, Duke of, 299, 300 and n., 

371, 412. 
Buisson, 114 and n., 115. 
Bulletin du tribunal revolutionnaire, 

381, 384. 
Bunker Hill, 231. 
Burke, 218, 340-341 notes. 
Bumey, Fanny, 24, 426 n. 
Buzot, 126, 171, 186, 306 n., 307, 327, 

334, 342, 344-345, 348, 420, 422, 

426. 
Buzotins, 346, 420. 

Cahen, 188 n. 

Caisse d'escompte. See Brissot. 

Calas case, 21 n. 

Calonne, 34 n., 35 and n., 61 and n. 

Calvados, Department of, 345. 

Cambon. 282, 311 n. 

Cambridge, 69 n., 74. 

Cambridge, University of, 183. 

Camus, 153 and n. 

Capet. See Louis XVI. 

Carolina, North, 84. 

Carra, 184. 

Cazenove, 66 n., 67 and n. 

Cercle social, 161, 172. 

Cerutti, 451. 

Chabot, 281, 378-380. 

Chalons-sur-Mame, Academy of, 19, 

287 71. 
Chambon, 17. 
Chambonas, 284-285, 287 and n., 

424. 
Champagneux, 151 and n., 367. 
Champ de Mars, petition of, 177-179, 

337, 370-371. 
Champs filysees, 164. 
Channel, the English, 27, 401, 436. 
Chant du Coq, 217 and n., 218 n. 
Charavay, 68 n., 217 n., 218 n. 
Charles I, 285. 
Chartres, mentioned, 4-7, 10, 39, 94, 

186 n., 220, 222 and n., 223, 352- 

353. 
Chartres, Duke of, 21 and n., 32-33, 

389. 
Chasse, 145. 



INDEX 



517 



Chastellux, Marquis de, 36 and n., 52, 
55, 59-61, 67, 77, 79, 183. 

Chaumette, 378 and n. 

Chaveau de la Garde, 138 n., 377 and 
n., 382 and n. 

Chauvelin, 250 and n., 375. 

Chester, 69 n. 

Chatelet, 96, 138. 

Choderlos de Laclos, 166, 177-178 
and n. 

Chronique de Paris, 120. 

Chronique du Mois, 120 and n., 262, 
326. 

Clarkson, Thomas, 185 and n., 190- 
194, 422. 

Claretie, 218 n. 

Claviere, Etienne, relation to Brissot, 
22 and n. ; financial assistance given 
to Brissot, 34; collaboration with 
Brissot in work for Mirabeau, 34 
and n., 35 and n.; collaboration with 
Brissot in De la France ei des Etats- 
Unis, 48, 55 n., 63-66 and notes, 90; 
connection with Societe Gallo-AmSri- 
caine, 61-63; connection with Bris- 
sot in American speculation, 66-67, 
72-73, 89, 431, 437-439; connection 
with Brissot at opening of States- 
General, 91; connection with Chro- 
nique du Mois, 120 n.; connection 
with Patriote Franqais, 121; con- 
nection with republicanism, 169, 
171, 276; connection with the Amis 
des Noirs, 184-185, 191-192, 205- 
206, 442; in the ministry, 249, 262 
and n., 279; mentioned, 247, 420. 

Clermont, 172. 

Clermont-Tonnerre, Stanislas, 68 n., 
108 and n., 109 n., 165-166. 

Cleves, 253 n. 

Clive, 72 n. 

Cloots, 253 and n., 310 n., 344, 346, 
348, 422. 

Coblenz, 233-234, 271, 363. 

Collot d'Herbois, 120 n. 

Colons Blancs, Club de. See Massiac, 
Club de. 

ComitS de Recherches. See Municipal- 
ity; also Paris. 

Committee of Public Safety, 293, 340. 

Committee of Twenty-one. See Legis- 
lative Assembly. 

Commune, struggle of, with Legisla- 
tive Assembly, 292, 296-302 and 



notes; struggle of Brissot against, 
296-302 and notes, 308, 328, 333. 

Conciergerie, 363, 371 and n., 384 n., 
386. 

Condorcet, connection with Amis des 
Noirs, 184 n., 187-188, 191, 212, 
443; attitude toward republicanism, 
251, 276-277; mentioned, 19 n., 32, 
120 n., 154, 171-172, 180, 213 n., 
221, 237, 250, 269, and n., 270 n., 
299 and n., 305, 318, 338, n., 420, 
426, 452. 

Confederation des Amis de la Verite, 
161. 

Constantinople, 264, 379. 

Constituent Assembly, 19 n., 113, 124, 
182, 207, 223, 253 n., 285 n., 373, 
375. 

Conti, Prince de, 32 and n. 

Convention, election of Brissot to, 
303-304; general position of Brissot 
in, 303; membership of Brissot in 
Diplomatic Committee of, 304, 342; 
membership of Brissot in Committee 
on the Constitution, 304; abolition 
of royalty by, 304-305; struggle in, 
between Girondins and Mountain 
(Jacobins), 305-308; attitude of, 
toward revolutionary propaganda, 
310-312 and notes; attitude of, 
toward Swiss cantons and Geneva, 
312-314; attitude of, toward Spanish 
America and Genet's expedition, 
314-316 and notes; Committee of 
General Defense of, 315, 316 and 
n., 318-320; Committee of Public 
Safety of, 293, 315 7i., 358, 362-363, 
368; attitude of, toward opening of 
the Scheldt, 316-319; attitude of, 
on king's trial, 318, 321-324; dis- 
cussion of war question by, 318-324; 
Committee of General Security of, 
324, 328, 369 m., 403, 405; final 
struggle in, between Girondins and 
Mountain supported by Commune 
of Paris, 351; Committee of Legisla- 
tion of, 369 n., mentioned, 20 n., 25 
n., 117, 123, 125 n., 141, 153 n., 181, 
186 n., 238 n., 253 n., 293, 299, 302, 
305, 306 and n., 307-308, 310-311, 
314, 316 and n., 318, 319, 321-324, 
329, 332-339, 345, 347, 349-351; 
355, 356-359, 361-364, 366, 368, 
370, 377,378 n., 383,426 n., 440,450. 



518 



INDEX 



Copenhagen, 34. 

Cordeliers, 166 n., 179 n., 330. 

Corps Legislatif, 352 n. 

Courrier des Departements, 120, 348 n. 

Courner de V Europe, 13-15, 24, 27, 219. 

Courtois, 403. 

Craigie, Andrew, 66 and n., 71-73 and 

notes, 85 and n., 89-90 notes, 433- 

438. 
Crette, de Paluel, 451. 
Crevecoeur, Saint John de, 59-61, 63, 

67, 70 n., 186, 431. 

Danton, connection with Brissot, 138, 
166 n., 173, 186 n., 221, 292, 301, 306 
and n., mentioned, 2, 104, 308 n., 
330-331, 366, 378 n., 414, 422, 426 n. 

Dard, 179 and n. 

Dauban, 348. 

Daverhoult, 230-231. 

De Bourges, 191. 

De Graves, 261-263. 

Delacroix, 97 n. 

Delaunay, 32. 

Delaware, 82. 

Delessart, attack of Brissot on, 244- 
249 and notes, 261-262, 272, 379- 
380, 420. 

De Moustier, 69, 70 n. 

De Pons, 213 n. 

De Saint-Etienne, 125 and n. 

Descombes, 358 and n., 359. 

Desfaix, 378 and n. 

Desforges, 25-30, 219-221, 391-392, 
401, 426 n. 

Desmoulins, Camille, Jean Pierre Bris- 
sot dSmasque, 4 n., 124, 218 n., 242- 
244; Histaire des Brissotins, 336- 
337 and n., 338, 421; connection 
with Brissot, 139, 167-168, 269, 301- 
302, 383, 400 n.; Revolutions de 
France et de Brabant, 119, 138, 167 
and n.,169 and n., 176 and n., 384 n.; 
mentioned, 378 n. 

Destoumelles, 328 and n. 

Dhosier, 108 and n. 

Diderot, 8, 56. 

Dietrich, 371. 

Dillon, Arthur, 203-204, 364, 366. 

Directory, 352 n., 407. 

Dodsley, 393. 

Dover, 391, 436. 

Droz, 20 n. 

Du Barry, Madame, 13, 30 n. , 



Du Chastellet, 171 and n., 172, 263. 

Du Crest, Marquis, 38-39. 

Duer, William, 66, 69, 72-73 and notes, 
85 and n., 433-436, 438. 

Duheim, 378 and n. 

Dumont, Etienne, 91 and n., 95 n., 
171 and n., 172 n., 247-249, 261. 
263, 265, 277, 420-422. 

Dumas, Mathieu, 240. 

Dumouriez, 249, 251, 262, 264-265, 
279-280, n., 285 n., 309-310, 314 n., 
329, 332, 335, 337, 357 n., 364, 366, 
371, 377, 404, 413. 

Dupont, Felicite. See Felicite. 

Dupont, Francis, 79 n., 84, 85 and n., 
89 n., 398-401, 409, 435, 438. 

Dupont, Julie Henriette, 400. 

Dupont, Madame, kindness to Brissot, 
16, 387-388, 401; loan of money to 
him, 23, 33; assistance to Brissot 
in gaining release from the Bastille, 
27; bearer of news to Felicite, 27, 
392, 401; help in the office of the 
Patriote Franqais, 123, 396; relied 
on by Felicite, 401-402; care of 
family after Brissot's imprisonment, 
403; project of, for a school, 407; 
opinion of, concerning Brissot, 402 
n., 425. 

Dupont, Mademoiselle. See Felicite. 

Dupont, Marie Therese, 400. 

Dupont, Nancy (Madame Aublay), 
397, 398, 400-401, 411. 

Dupont de Nemours, Lomemie, 35 n. 

Duport, 136, 272 and n., 273-274. 

Duportail, 272 and n. 

Duroveray, 22 and n., 250 and n., 
264. 

Dussaulx, 120 n., 241. 

Electoral Assembly, 223-244 and n. 

Elie de Beaumont, 21 and w. 

Emigres, attitude of Brissot toward 
question of, 227-232, 236, 252, 255- 
256. 

England, 15, 20, 23, 36, 37 n., 39, 40 n., 
49, 54, 61, 73, 117, 143, 151, 176, 
182 and n., 184, 186 n., 191, 214, 
220, 221, 235, 250, 273 and n., 275, 
285, 295, 299, 316, 318-320, 323- 
324, 339, 364, 366, 373-376, 389, 
404. 

Eure, Department of the, 303 n., 
304 n. 



INDEX 



519 



Eure-et-Loir, Department of the, 303 

n., 304 n, 352 n. 
Europe, 271, 294, 302, 310, 314, 317, 

318, 322, 323, 371, 372, 399, 427, 

433. 
Eury, 452. 

Fabre d'Eglantine, 292, 378 and n. 

Faguet, M., 418. 

Fairfield, 69 n. 

Falmouth, 85, 436. 

Faucompre, 361. 

Federalism. See Brissot; also Giron- 
dins. 

Felicite, acquaintance of, made by 
Brissot, 15-16, 387; engagement to 
Brissot, 18, 387-389; marriage to 
Brissot, 22-23, 389; relation to Ma- 
dame de Genlis, 23, 388-389; life in 
London, 26, 391-392; birth of first 
child, 26; news broken to, of Bris- 
sot's imprisonment in the Bastille, 
27, 392; necessity of frugal life for, 
34; literary work, 37, 393 and n.; 
interest in the United States as pos- 
sible place of abode, 81-82, 89, 394, 
396; opinion of, concerning the Pa- 
triate Frangais, 123 n.; arrest of, 
368 n.; accusations against, in con- 
nection with Brissot's arrest and 
trial, 364, 366-368; letters of Brissot 
to, 385; part in Brissot's career, 387; 
efforts to secure release of Brissot 
from Bastille, 392; birth of second 
and third children, 393; difficulties 
and privations, 394-396; character 
of, 395-398; alienation from hus- 
band, 395; troubles of, with children, 
395, 408, 411; pension given to, and 
to children of, 407; opinion of, con- 
cerning Brissot, 398; appreciation of, 
by Brissot, 398, 402-403; flight of, 
after arrest of Brissot, 403; arrest 
and examination of, 403-404; im- 
prisonment of, 405; efforts of, to 
obtain from government reimburse- 
ment of losses, 406; attempt to es- 
tablish a school, 407; application of, 
to government for aid, 408; mainte- 
nance of reading-room by, 408;death 
and burial of, 410-411. 
Perri, 61 n. 

Fersen, Count de, 276 and n. 
Feuillet de Concha, 250 n., 276. 



Filangieri, 48, 56. 

Filles-Saint-Thomas, 289 n. See also 
Municipality. 

Fisher, Miers, 69, 88, 89 n., 399 n. 

Flanders, 283. 

Foreign war. See War. 

Foucroy, 398. 

France, 235, 237, 240, 242, 246, 249- 
250, 253 71., 254, 257, 273, n., 274 n., 
285 and n., 292, 294-296, 305, 310, 
311-314, 316-324, 335-337, 340, 
341 n., 370-372, 376, 380, 391-392, 
412, 417, 427, 433-435. 

France, Isle de, 250. 

Franklin, Benjamin, 57, 69, 78, 184. 

Franklin, Temple, 69. 

French Scioto Company. See Scioto 
Company, French. 

Gallo-AmSricaine Societe, 37, 61-63 
and notes, 70 n. 

Gannat, 358-360. 

Garat, 19 and n., 330-331, 338, 427. 

Garran de Coulon, 120 n., 208 n., 248. 

Gebelin, 7. 

Genet, 90, 314-316, 380. 

Geneva, 22 and n., 25, 53, 250 n., 287 n., 
312-314. 

Genlis, Madame de, 21 and n., 32, 33 
and n., 389-390. 

Genlis-Sillery, Madame de. See Gen- 
lis, Madame de. 

Gensonne, 208 and n., 211, 220, 235, 
239, 247, 252, 265, 272, 274 n., 
275 n., 281, 285 and n., 286 n., 288, 
290, 309, 334, 351 and n., 383, 404, 
420 and n., 426. 

Gerle, 145. 

Germany, 236, 399. 

Gibbon, 24. 

Gien, 353. 

Girey-Dupre, 123 and n., 283 n., 298, 
308 n., 323 n., 329 and n., 331, 334, 
404, 422. 

Girondin ministry, 22 n., 261-266 and 
notes; Brissot's influence on, 289, 
309, 317, 379. 

Girondins, Brissot's connection with, 
1-3, 181, 225, 261, 268, 272-278, 
282-291, 324, 412-423; belliger- 
ency of, 251-257, 418-419; attitude 
of, toward republicanism and de- 
thronement, 253-255, 276-291, 
412-419; attack of, on "Austrian 



520 



INDEX 



Committee," 272-276 and notes; re- 
sponsibility of, for events of June 
20, 281 and n., 419; accusation 
against, of plotting to overthrow 
the republic, 299, 305 and n., 412; 
struggle of, with Commune, 301- 
302, 305, 333; opposition of, to 
centralization, 303; efforts of, for 
a departmental guard, 305-306 
and notes; struggle with party of 
the Mountain (Jacobins) during 
the Convention, 305-309, 327, 333, 
342, 351; attitude of, toward revo- 
lutionary propaganda, 310; attitude 
of, toward death and trial of the king, 
321; attitude of, toward war with 
England, 324; constitution drawn 
up by, 324 n.; newspapers of, at- 
tacked, 329; Patriate Frangais, organ 
of, 329; attempt of Dan ton to re- 
concile with Mountain, 330-331; 
attack on, on March 9, 329-330; 
accusations against, on account of 
Dmuouriez's failure and desertion, 
329, 333; accusations against, of 
federalism, 336-337, 342, 350, 412; 
attitude toward centralization, 350; 
expulsion of, from Convention, 342, 
350, 352; report of Saint-Just on, 
363-364; defense of, by Brissot, 364- 
365; report against, by Amar, 369- 
371; trial of, 377-382; verdict 
against, 383-384; last hours and 
execution, 384-386 and notes; reac- 
tion in favor of, 405-407; summary 
of general policy of, 411-417; com- 
parison of, with party of the Moun- 
tain, 418-419; question of leader- 
ship of, by Brissot, 419; mentioned, 
1-3, 117, 120, 121 n., 123, 166 n., 
171-172, 184, 210-211, 214, 249, 
251, 253, 261, 263, 265, 281 and n., 
282, 288, 289, 291, 292 n., 299, 307, 
309, 317, 318 n., 382, 405. 

Goetz-Bernstein, 292 n. 

Gorguereau, 451. 

Gorsas, 348, 381. 

Goulet, 275 n. 

Gouvion, 451. 

Gouy D'Arsy, 203 and n., 204 n. 

Gower, Eari, 181 n., 288. 

Grandchamp, Sophie, 367. 

Gregoire, 121, 202. 

Grenville, Lord, 320 n. 



Gretry, rue de, 393. 

Griffin, 69. 

Grimm, 342 and n. 

Guadaloupe, 409 n. 

Guadet, 208 and n., 210-211, 225, 247, 
252, 270, 281, 286, 288, 289 n., 290, 
299 and n., 309, 331, 333-334, 336, 
351 and n., 404, 420 and n., 426. 

Guiana, French, 296. 

Guillard, 8, 11-12. 

Guy-Kirsaint, 120 n. 

Hambourg, 440. 

Hamilton, Alexander, 69, 84. 

Hancock, General, 69, 75. 

Hanover, House of, 295. 

Hartford, 69 n. 

Harvard, 74. 

Haskell, 438. 

Hastings, Warren, 36. 

Haute-Loire, Department of the, 345. 

Havre, 71, 83. 

Heath, General, 69, 75. 

Hebert, 338 n., 378 and n. 

Hebertists, 253 n. 

Helvetius, 120 n., 348, 422. 

Helvetius, Madame, 276. 

Hennin, 264. 

Herault de Sechelles, 186 and n., 

237. 
Holland, 39, 40 and n., 50, 53, 85, 316, 

319, 323-324, 337, 375, 377, 438, 

440-441. 
Horeau, 6-7. 
Hudson River, 81. 
Hungary, 53. 

Illinois Company, 82 n., 89. 

India, 61, 339. 

Indians, 65, 80. 

Indies, East, 36, 81, 339. 

Indies, West, 182, 389. 

Intermediare (V) des chercheurs et des 

curieux, 244 n. 
Ireland, 339. 
Isnard, 230, 235, 241 n., 251-252, 255, 

260, 341, 345. 
Ivernais (d'). Sir Francis, 22 and n. 

Jacobin Club, attacks on Brissot at, 
268-271, 288, 289; attack on Lafay- 
ette at, 290; expulsion of Brissot 
by, 307-309; mentioned, 121 n., 160, 
173, 175-176 and notes, 177-179, 



INDEX 



521 



194, 222 n., 223, 226 and n., 231 n., 
232 and n., 233-239, 241, 289, 307, 
309, 338 n., 352 n., 353 n., 37P. 

Jacobin Party, accusation of guilt of 
massacres of September, 305 ; strug- 
gle with Girondins during the Con- 
vention, 305-309, 334-350, 362 n. 

Janvier, M., 10. 

Jarry, 250. 

Jaucourt, 247. 

Jaures, 302 n., 324. 

Jay, John, 84. 

Jeanbon, Saint-Andre, 329. 

Jefferson, Thomas, 66 n., 186, 431. 

Jesuits, 60. 

Jews, 53, 102, 134, 146, 416. 

Joly, 197, 448. 

Joseph II, 36 and n., 53 n., 55. 

Journal de Paris, 55 n., 61 n., 120, 266- 
268 and notes. 

Journal general de la cour et de la ville, 
104 and n., 120, 217-218, 219 n., 
228, 242. 

Julien, 318 and n., 452. 

Jumilhac, 108-109. 

Jime 20, attitude of Brissot toward 
events of, 281-282. 

Kentucky, 118. 

Kerolio, 138 n. 

Kersaint, 420 n. 

King, Rufus, 84. 

Kirwan, 24, 33. 

Koch, 226, 229-231, 239 n., 242. 

Korman, 37 n., 38 n. 

Kropotkin, 416 n. 

La Blancherie, 20 and h. 

Lacepede, 451. 

Laclos. See Choderlos de Laclos. 

Lacretelle, Pierre Louis, 19 and n. 

Lafayette, connection of Brissot with, 
179-180, 186, 191, 193 and re., 224, 
241, 268-269, 276, 289 n., 290, 293, 
308-309, 337, 357 n., 370, 374 and 
n., 379-380, 412-413; mentioned, 
63 n., 65 n., 68 re., 80 re., 97 and re., 
125, 157, 159, 162, 167 and re., 169 
and re., 287 re. 

La Force, 405. 

La Harpe, 21 and re. 

Lameth, Theodore, 160, 181, 445. 

Lamourette, 283. 

Lanthenas, 120 re., 121 and re., 122, 140, 



151, 160-162, 186, 202 and n., 292 
and re., 308 re., 443. 

Laporte, 328. 

Lasource, 382, re., 384 re. 

Laurent de Couteux, 437. 

Lavoisier, 154. 

Law, 153. 

Lebrun, 360, 376. 

Legislative Assembly, Committee of 
Twenty-one of, 292, 296-302 and 
notes, 344, 379; struggle of, with 
Commune, 292, 296-302 and notes, 
379-381; action of, against Lafay- 
ette, 293, 379-380; action of, toward 
Swiss troops, 294 and re.; action of, 
toward foreign powers after August 
10, 294; attitude of, toward non- 
juring clergy, 296; opinion of Brissot 
of work of, 301-302; mentioned, 25 
re., 28, 117-118, 123-124, 175 re., 181, 
186 re., 207, 208 re., 216-217, 223- 
229, 231, 239, 241-242, 244-247, 
251, 253 re., 258-259, 261, 269, 272 re., 
273-280, 282, 285 re., 286 re., 288- 
299 and notes, 301-303 and notes, 
317, 332, 370, 373, 378 re., 379. 

Lenoir, 31-32. 

Leopold, 342. 

Le Page, 122, 123 n. 

Levant, The, 399. 

Linguet, 11, 113, 426 n. 

Lisbon, 440. 

Loire, 303 re. 

London, first visit of Brissot to, 15; 
location of Lycee, 20; Brissot's life 
in, 24-33; mentioned, 30 re., 161 re., 
172 n., 214 re., 218-219, 285 re., 317, 
320, 333, 389-390, 400-401,434, 436. 

Lons-le-Saunier, 160. 

Louis XIV, 228, 240. 

Louis XV, 30 re., 103 re., 153. 

Louis XVL 30, 141, 149, 177, 250 n., 
255-268, 272 re., 267 re., 273, 320- 
324, 338-339, 344, 350, 357 re., 363- 
364, 370-371, 380-381, 440. 

Louisiana, 315, 316 re., 339. 

Louvet, 235, 238 and re., 251-253, 307, 
308 re., 381. 

Loyseau, 32. 

Lubersac, 186 and n. 

Luxembourg, 382 re., 388. 

Luckner, Marshal, 290. 

Lycee. See Brissot. 

Lyons, 39, 151, 222, 223 re., 371. 



522 



INDEX 



Macaulay, Mrs., 26. 

Mackintosh, 36. 

Madeleine, cemetery, 386 n. 

Madison, James, 69, 84. 

Madrid, 52, 272, 440. 

Mailhe, 249, 326. 

Maissemy, 114 n.,116 n., 137. 

Malassisin, 244 n. 

Mallet du Pan, Jacques, 22 and n., 36, 
277, 314 n. 

Malouet, 131, 172. 

Maluet, 350. 

Mansfield, 24, 33, 182. 

Manuel, 116, 253. 

Marat, 2, 17, 104, 138-139, 224, 261 n., 
293, 299 and n., 305, 309, 329 n., 
331, 333-335, 338, 344, 357 n.. 368, 
379. 

Marchena, 314, 360-361. 

Marie Antoinette, 30-31. 

Marseilles, 306 n. 

Martin, 320, 439, 441. 

Martinique, 198. 

Massachusetts, 69, 75. 

Massacres of September. See Septem- 
ber massacres. 

Massiac, Club de, 194, 196, 199. 

Mathiez, 179 n. 

Maty, 24. 

Maury, L'Abbe, 147. 

Mayenne, 20 n. 

Mazzei, Philippe, 61 n. 

Mediterranean, 339. 

Meillan, 351 and n., 352, 425. 

Mentelle, 16-18, 25, 32, 367, 368. 

Mercier, 120 n. 

Mexico, 381. 

Mercure, Le, 19 and n., 21 n. 

Merlin of Thionville, 268. 

Middleton, 69 n. 

Mifflin, Warren, 69. 

Mirabeau, Gabriel Riqueti, Count de, 
relation to Claviere, 22 n. ; relation of 
Brissot and Claviere to, 34 and n., 
35 and n.; trouble with Brissot over 
manuscript, 35 and n.; work by 
Brissot for, 36; connection of Brissot 
with, in municipal affairs, 101; es- 
tablishment of newspaper by, 1 13 n. ; 
difference of opinion between Bris- 
sot and, on constitution, 126, 128- 
133, 143-144; opinion of, on foreign 
affairs, 142-143; opinion of Brissot 
on death of, 144; assistance given to 



Amis des Noirs by, 183-185 and 
notes, 193-194 and notes, 202; men- 
tioned, 221, 250 n., 442. 

Miranda, 316 n., 335. 

Mississippi River, 81, 314. 

Mohawk River, 81-82. 

Monge, 338 and n. 

Monin, 96. 

Moniteur, Le, mentioned or quoted, 
97 71., 101 n., 117, 123 n., 130 ft., 138 
n., 141 and n., 196, 206 n., 209-211 
notes, 215 n., 228-233 notes, 235- 
237 notes, 239-242 notes, 244-245 
notes, 247 n., 249 n., 251-252 notes, 
254-256 notes, 280-281 notes, 283 
n., 285 n., 287 n., 290-291 notes, 293- 
294 notes, 296-298 notes, 301 n., 
305-306 notes, 310-311 notes, 313- 
314 notes, 316 n., 318 n., 320 n., 322- 
324 notes, 329 n., 333-334 notes, 
344-347 notes, 357 n., 364 n., 369- 
370 notes, 383-384 notes, 420 n. 

Monk, 363, 365. 

Montaigne, 136. 

Montargis, 362. 

Montaut, 328 and n., 380-381. 

Montesquieu, 41, 45, 49-50, 56, 285 n., 
288. 

Montesquieu (General), 313-314. 

Monthly Review, 303. 

Mont Jura, 161. 

Montmorin, 219, 272 and n., 275 and 
n., 294, 380. 

Montrol, 10 n. 

Morande, Theveneau de, 24, 28-32, 
and notes, 218-219 and notes, 301, 
336, 366, 377, 426ft. 

Moravian Brethren, 150. 

Moreau de Saint-Mery, 204-205. 

Morris, Robert, 73 n. 

Mosneron, 198 n. 

Mother-in-law, of Brissot. See Du- 
pont, Madame. 

Moulins, 353-356, 359, 360-363 and 
notes, 371. 

Mountain, Party of the, hostility be- 
tween, and Girondins, 305-306, 327- 
333; attack of, on Girondins be- 
cause of Dumouriez's failure and 
treason, 329-333; attack, of, on 
Girondin newspapers, 329 and n., 
334; attempt of Danton to reconcile 
with Girondins, 330-331; final 
struggle with Girondins, 334-342; 



INDEX 



523 



mentioned, 2-3, 117, 186 n., 262, 
308, 378 and n., 382; comparison of, 
with Girondins, 417-419. 

Municipality of Paris, Brissot's connec- 
tion with district of the Filles-Saint- 
Thomas of, 93, 94-95 notes, 100 n., 
221; plan of Brissot for committees 
of correspondence of, 93 and n., 97- 
98; Brissot, president of the Filles- 
Saint-Thomas of, 97-98; Brissot's 
part in building up permanent organ- 
ization for, 98-101; Brissot's ideas 
on relation of, to central govern- 
ment, 99-101 ; Brissot's ideas on re- 
lation of, to departments, 101; Bris- 
sot's part in administration of, 102; 
relation of, to events of October 5 
and 6, 102, 106-107; Brissot's 
opinion on sale of church lands to, 
102-103, 111; Brissot's opinion on 
relation of, to the caisse d'escompte, 
103, 111; relation of Brissot to the 
section of the Bibliotheque of, 104 and 
71., 222; appeal in Brissot's section 
of, for dismissal of ministry, 104 and 
n. ; attempt of Brissot to interest, in 
cause of negro, 105, 106, 111; sup- 
port of Brissot of democratic fac- 
tion of, 104; relation of Brissot to 
C omits des Recherches of, 106-110, 
112, 118, 157, 370, 380; opinion of 
Brissot on balance of power be- 
tween central council and districts 
of, 110-111; end of Brissot's active 
part in, 111-112. 

Munster, Treaty of, 317. 

Nancy, 158-159. 

Nantes, 152, 162, 203, 204 n. 

Napoleon, 1, 22 n., 216. 

Narbonne, 233, 235, 245, 261, 268- 
269, 272, 276, 357 n., 376, 379. 

National Assembly. See Assembly, 
National. 

Necker, 50-51, 115, 148-149, 164, 190 
and n., 191-192, 437. 

Negro, support of, by Brissot against 
strictures of Chastellux, 59-67; in- 
terest of Brissot in condition of, in 
the United States, 78-80. See also 
Amis des Noirs, and United States. 

Netherlands, 376. 

Neuchatel, 22, 54, 354 and n, 

Nevers, 353. 



Newark, 69 n. 

Newburyport, 69 n. 

New Hampshire, 84. 

New Haven, 69 n. 

New Jersey, 82. 

New Orleans, 410. 

New Rochelle, 69 n. 

New York, 67-68, 69 n., 72 n., 75, 77, 

214, 409-410, 435. 
New York Historical Society Papers, 

quoted, 79 n., 221, 434-439. 
Nice, 310, 344. 
Noailles, 251, 273 and n. 
NoUeau, 10. 

Nootka Sound, 143 and n. 
Norfolk, 435. 
North Sea, 341. 
Nouveau Voyage, 61 n. See also United 

States. 

Odun (d'), Madame, 276, 420. 

Oge, 202-203, 206 n., 214. 

Ohio, 88. 

Ohio Company, 85. 

Orleans, 246 n., 248, 335, 353. 

Orleans, Duke of, 23 and n., 33 and n., 

38-39, 95, 153, 287 n., 363, 389 n., 

390, 412-413. 
Oswald, 120 n. 

Pache, 309-310, 338 and n., 339, 378 
and n. 

Fade de Famille, 143, 237 n. 

Padua Circular, 239. 

Paganel, 208 and n., 215 n., 225 
and n. 

Paine, Thomas, 63 n., 121, 171, 305, 
315. 

Palais-Royal, 219, 242. 

Pampeluna, 186 and n. 

Pange, Chevalier de, 109 and n., 268 
and n. 

Paris, attack of, on Girondins, 334- 
335, 341-350; mentioned, 10-11, 
14-17, 52, 54, 67, 72, 214-215, 220 n., 
222 and n., 223, 243, 272-273 notes, 
283 n., 297, 299, 304 n., 306 and n., 
307-308, 338 n., 343-350, 352, 353 n., 
358, 362, 366, 368 n., 370-371, 374, 
378 n., 381, 388 n., 392, 394-395, 
401, 404, 408, 412, 418-420, 436. 
See also Municipality. 

Parker, Daniel, 66 and n., 71-72 notes, 
73, 83, 433-434, 436-438. 



524 



INDEX 



Parlement of Paris, 18, 51. 

Pastoret, 451. 

Patrioie FrariQais, establishment of, by 
Brissot, 2, 96, 113, 416; quoted, 87- 
88, 101 and n., 102, 104-105 notes, 
113-149 and notes, 152-154, 156, 
158-177 and notes, 179-181 notes, 
186 n., 197 n., 200-201 notes, 211 n., 
214 n., 216-217, 219, 223 n., 225 n., 
227 n., 230-235, and notes, 250 n., 
253-259 notes, 260-263 and notes, 
265-266 notes, 268 n., 270 n., 272- 
273 notes, 274 n., 278-282 notes, 283 
and n., 289 and n., 290 n., 293 and 
n., 296 and n., 300 n., 304 and n., 
306-307 notes, 309, 311 and n., 312 
71., 317, 321 n., 326-331 notes, 333 
and n., 343 n., 345 n., 350 n., 412 n.; 
struggle of, with censorship, 113- 
116, 137-138; comparison of, with 
other journals, 113; first and second 
prospectus, 114; interest of, in muni- 
cipal affairs, 118; organ of the Amis 
des Noirs, 118, 194-195, 197 and n., 
201 n., 202-207 and notes; interest 
of, in the United States, 118-119, 
125, 130-133, 137, 142, 152, 164, 176; 
style, 119-120; relation of, to other 
journals, 120; assistance of collabo- 
rators in, 121-122; assistance of 
family in, 123, 196, 400-401; finan- 
cial support of Le Page in, 122; part- 
nership of Girey-Dupre in, 123; re- 
sponsibility of Brissot for, 123-124; 
opinion of, on the declaration of 
rights and on the constitution, 124- 
136; opinion on question of one 
chamber or two, 126-127; opinion 
on the veto, 127-130; opinion on 
right of declaring war and making 
peace, 130-131; opinion on choice 
of the ministry, 130-132; opinion on 
methods of amendment, 132-133; 
opinion on extent of suffrage, 133- 
134; opinion on basis of suffrage, 
134-135; support of, of rights of 
Jews, Protestants, and actors, 134, 
146; opinion on submittal of con- 
stitution to the people, 135-136, 
180; opinion on judicial system, 136- 
137, 156-157; opinion of freedom 
of the press, 137-138; opinion on 
freedom of speech, 138-140; accusa- 
tion of, for libel, 140; forced aban- 



donment of, by Brissot, 141, 329 
and n.; opinion on administration of 
National Assembly, 141-142; opin- 
ion on Avignon, 142; opinion on ec- 
clesiastical questions, 142-147, 260- 
261 and notes; opinion of, on Nootka 
Sound, 143; opinion of, on financial 
questions, 147-153, 359 and n.; in- 
terest of, in economic matters, 54; 
opinion of, on events of October 5 
and 6, 157-158; opinion of, on affairs 
of Nancy, 158-159; opinion of, on 
military discipline, 159; interest of, 
in democracy, 159-165; attitude of, 
toward popular societies, 160, 162; 
opinion of, on republicanism, 165- 
177; opinion of, on flight to Va- 
rennes, 168-169; opinion of, on quali- 
fications for electors, 180 n.; repu- 
tation of Brissot as editor of, 181, 
217; advocacy by, of foreign war, 
233-235 and notes, 256-257; recom- 
mended as patriotic by Jacobin Club, 
239; attack of, on Desmoulins, 243 
and n.; criticism by, of Narbonne, 
245; attitude of, toward republican- 
ism, 254-255, 277-278; attack of, 
on Robespierre, 270 and n.; attitude 
of, toward Dumouriez, 279-280 and 
notes ; attack of, on court, 280 ; design 
of pikes given by, 281; approval by, 
of "kiss of Lamourette," 283; atti- 
tude of, toward Lafayette, 293; sup- 
port by, of Legislative Assembly 
against the Commune, 296-302; 
summary by, of work of Legislative 
Assembly, 301-302; attitude of, on 
aboUtion of royalty, 304 and n., 305; 
support by, of Girondins against 
Mountain, 306 and n.; support by, 
of Buzot against Jacobins, 307; 
attitude of, toward the revolution- 
ary propaganda and annexations, 
311 and n. ; attitude of, toward open- 
ing of the Scheldt, 317; alleged sup- 
port of Lafayette by, 320; attitude 
of, toward trial and death of Louis 
XVI, 321 ; attitude of, toward social 
democracy, 325-327; attack on, as 
Girondin newspaper, 329 and n.; 
under direction of Girey-Dupre, 331 ; 
attitude of, toward treason of Du- 
mouriez, 332-333; organ of Giron- 
dins, 329; attacked in connection 



INDEX 



525 



with trial of Marat, 324; attitude 

toward federalism, 342. 
Pelleport, 23-24, 27. 31-32. 
Peltier, 265, 301. 
Pennsylvania, 49, 77-78, 82-84. 
Pere Duchene, Le, 119, 338, 378 n. 
Perroud, M. Claude, quoted, 4-5 notes, 

10 n., 15 n., 24 n., 33 n., 87 n., 121, 
122-123 notes, 150 n., 292 n., 314 n., 
335 n., 354^355 notes, 363-364 
notes, 367 n., 371 n., 375 n., 400-403 
notes, 407 m. 

Petion, source of information on Bris- 
sot's childhood, 6, 7 and n.; assist- 
ance given by, to Brissot in founding 
a Maison philanthropique, 39; ef- 
forts of, to secure election of Brissot 
to States-General, 94; assistance 
given to Brissot in the Patriote 
FraiiQais, 121; agreement with Bris- 
sot on the constitution, 131, 134- 
135 ; mentioned or quoted, 6-7 notes, 

11 n., 14 n., 24 n., 28 n., 30 n., 34 n., 
39, 56 n., 66-67 notes, 84 n., 121 n., 
140, 143, 168, 169 and n., 176, 180, 
191, 202, 221, 276, 282, 301, 305, 
308 n., 333, 335, 351 n., 379-381. 
395, 404, 425. 

Petit, 275 n. 

Petit- Jean, 108 and n. 

Philadelphia, 69 n., 75, 78, 119, 364, 

366, 379, 435. 
Philippe Egalite, 337. 
Philips, James, 62 and n. 
Phillips, Richard, 425-426. 
Pigott, 138 n., 151, 186 and n. 
Pilnitz, Declaration of, 239. 
Pinkard, Dr., 183. 
Pitt, William, 218, 335, 337, 371. 375, 

380-381, 435. 
Poitiers. 186 n. 
Poland, 236. 
Polverel, 375. 
Pope, the, 142-147. 
Porentruy, 313. 
Porter, 435. 
Portsmouth, 69 n. 
Price, 24. 
Priestly, 24, 33. 
Protestants, 53, 416. 
Providence, 69 n. 
Prudhomme, 119. 
Prussia, 235, 250, 273, 309, 317. 
Pyrenees, 310, 339, 341. 



Quakers, 59-61, 67, 77-80, 146, 151, 
161, 182-183, 186 n. 

Ramus, 354 and n. 

Rebecqui, 344. 

Receveur, 24, 31-32. 

Recherches, ComitS de. See Munici- 
pality. 

Remiremont, 139. 

RSpublicain, Le, 371. 

Restoration, the, 273 n., 285 n. 

Revolutions de France et de Brabant, 
119-120, 229. 

Revolutions de Paris, 106 n., 107, 108 
and n., 119-120, 197 and n., 270 
n., 271, 272 and n.. 274 n.. 303 n., 
420 n. 

Rhine, 227, 283. 

Rhode Island, 82-83. 

Richelieu, 240. 

Riouffe, 384 and n. 

Riverol, 243-244 notes. 

Robert, 166 and n., 177, 264, 379, 388. 

Robespierre, antagonism between and 
Brissot, 232 and 71., 234-235,'237-239 
and notes, 241-242 and notes, 243, 
268-271 and notes, 278 n., 293, 297, 
302 n., 303, 307-308, 335, 338, 344; 
mentioned, 2, 140, 168-169, 180- 
181, 287 n., 331, 426 n., 442, 447 n. 

Robert, Dubayet, 215. 

Rochambeau, 250 n. 

Rochefoucauld, Duke of. 191, 193 n. 

Roederer, 253. 

Rohan, Cardinal de, 231. 

Rolands, assistance in attempting to 
foimd a maison philanthropique, 39; 
assistance in attempting to found 
the Societe agricole, 89, 151; connec- 
tion with Patriote Franqais, 121-122 
and notes, 262; mentioned, 7 n., 
33 n., 330. -See also Roland, 
Madame; Roland, M. 

Roland, Madame, assistance of, on 
the Patriote Franqais, 121-122 and 
notes, 134-135 and notes; connec- 
tion with Brissot, 161-162 notes, 
168-170 and notes, 178 and n., 180 
and n., 262-265 and notes, 367-368 
and notes, 404, 420 and n., 422; 
opinion of, concerning Brissot, 424- 
425; opinion of, concerning Madame 
Brissot, 397; opinion quoted, 144 n., 
150 n., 151, 168-170 and notes. 



526 



INDEX 



175 n., 176 and n., 180 n., 202 n., 
206 and n., 219, 223 and n., 262-265 
and notes, 279, 280 n., 281, 289 and 
n., 292 n., 300 n., 306, 315 n., 352 n., 
367 and n., 368 n., 399 n., 420 n., 
423 and n. 

Roland, M., connection with Brissot, 
121, 161-162, 249, 262-263, 265, 
279, 292 and n., 306, 337, 404, 414, 
420. 

Rome, 237. 

Rousseau, 8, 41-44, 66, 75, 150. 

Royer, 358 n. 

Ruelle, 376. 

Ruhl, 231. 

Russia, 84, 236, 320, 439. 

Rye, 69 n. 

Saint-Cloud, 108, 159, 167, 364, 404- 
405. 

Saint-Cyr, 408. 

Saint-Cyran, 213 and n. 

Saint-Denis, 223 n. 

Saint-Just, 301, 363-364, 371 n., 372. 

Saint Paul, 9 and n., 25, 41-42. 

Saint-Pierre, Bernardin de, 32-33. 

Saint Petersburg, 237, 320, 439. 

Saint-Pourgain, 359. 

Sainte-Beuve, 387. 

Salem, 69 n. 

Salle, 334, 351 n. 

Saloman, 156, 276. 

Santhonax, 375 and n., 379-380. 

Santo Domingo, 192, 195-196, 199, 
208-210, 212-215 and notes, 315, 
375, 410, 448-450. 

Savoy, 22, 310, 312, 319, 344. 

Scheldt, 310, 316-317, 319, 375. 

Schuyler, 84. 

Scioto Company, 70 n., 73 and n., 79 n., 
85-89 and notes, 221, 396. 

Scioto Company, French, 87-89. 

Segur, 250. 

Seine River, 345. 

Seine, Department of the, 101, 253 n. 

Seinie, Countess de, 94. 

Sens, 285 n. 

September, massacres of, 300-302; con- 
nection of Brissot with, 300-302, 
362-364; responsibility for. 305, 366, 
414. 

Sergent Margeau, 281 and n. 

Servan, 279, 314 and n. 

Seton, 437-438. 



Sharpe, Granville, 183. 

Shays' Rebellion, 159. 

Sieyes, 136, 138, 144, 276-277. 

Sillery, Marquis de, 21 n., 384 and n. 

Slavery and the Slave Trade, opposi- 
tion to, 78-80, 84; recognition of, by 
Constitution of United States, 84. 
See also Amis des Noirs. 

Societe agricole, 89, 150-151, 161. 

Sorel, 250 n., 312. 

Soulavie, 287 and n., 424 and n. 

Souque, 352 and n., 353-358, 361-362. 

Spain, 81, 143, 237 n., 313-315, 323, 
339, 360, 364, 375, 380-381. 

Spencer, 69 n. 

Springfield, 69 n. 

Stadinski, 66 n., 67 and n., 426. 

Stadtholder, 319. 

States-General, principles of Brissot 
in regard to, 93; connection of Bris- 
sot with elections to, 93-96; draft 
of a cahier for, 93-96; failure of Bris- 
sot to secure election to, 95 and n.; 
mentioned, 52, 74, 85, 115-117, 125, 
137, 153 and n., 158, 165, 186 n., 
188, 196 and n., 216-217, 435. 

Stockholm, 237. 

Strasbourg, 227, 320. 

Swinton, 13-16, 24, 27, 113, 219, 387, 
399, 426 n. 

Sweden, 236. 

Switzerland, 21, 314, 354, and n., 357 n. 

Sybel, von, 246. 

Talien, 450. 

Talleyrand, 152-153, 162, 250, 375. 

Tarbe, 208, 211. 

Terror, the, 2-3, 250 n., 273 n., 284, 

328, 414. 
Thermidor, 250 n., 253 n., 264 n.. 

352 n. 
Thomassin, 108. 
Thorillon, 451. 
Thouret, 136. 
Tobago, 250. 
Toulouse, 20 n., 273 n. 
Toussaint I'Ouverture, 212. 
Tremondrie, 201 n. 
Trenton, 69 n. 
Treves, Elector of, 236, 239 and n., 

255. 
Tuileries, 164, 284, 291, 294. 
Turgot, 35 and n., 50-51, 103, 164. 
Turin, 440. 



INDEX 



527 



United States, reasons for Brissot's 
journey to, 40, 61 ; interest of Brissot 
in, 48-50, 59-90, 372; influence of, 
on Brissot, 49; admiration of Brissot 
for, 49-50; efforts of Brissot to ob- 
tain means for a journey to, 61; 
argument of Brissot for close rela- 
tions with, 63-66; opportunity for 
journey to, 66; employment of Bris- 
sot by speculators in American debts 
and lands, 66-67, 72-73, 85-89; 
contract of Brissot for journey to, 
67, 72-73; purposes of journey, 67- 
68; questions of Brissot concerning, 
68; fitness of Brissot for investiga- 
tion of, 68-70; limitations of Brissot 
as an investigator, 70; general atti- 
tude of Brissot toward the, 70; ex- 
periences of Brissot during voyage 
to, 71; visit of Brissot to Cambridge 
and John Adams, 74; visit to Han- 
cock, 74 ; opinions concerning Samuel 
Adams, 74; journey of Brissot to 
New York, 75-76; opinion of Bris- 
sot on stage-coaches in, 76; opinion 
on inns in, 76; opinion on position of 
women in, 76; opinion of growing 
luxury in, 76-77; relation with 
Quakers in, and opinion of, 77-78; 
opinion on forms of worship in, 77- 
78; visit to Franklin in, 78; interest 
in condition of negro in, 78-80; in- 
terest in economic problems of, 80- 
82; interest in western expansion of. 
80; interest in, as a possible place 
of settlement, 81-82; criticism of 
paper money of, 82-83; admiration 
for liberty and equality in, 83-84; 
acquaintance with distinguished citi- 
zens of, 84; attitude toward new con- 
stitution of, 84 ; departure from, 85 ; 
interest in land companies in, 85-89; 
account of journey to, published in 
Nouveau Voyage, 88-90; settlement 
of relations in, 89; subsequent in- 
fluence of, upon Brissot, 90, 150- 
151, 176, 310, 413; influence of, seen 
in Patriote Franqais, 117-119, 125, 
130-133, 137, 142, 152, 176, 181, 227; 
influence of, on Brissot in connec- 
tion with war, 238; influence of, on 
Amis des Noirs, 189; influence of, 
on Brissot's plan for expedition to 
Spanish America, 315-316; alleged 



influence of, on federalistic ideas of 
Brissot, 349; alleged understanding 
of Brissot with government of, 364- 
366; plans of Madame Brissot for 
emigration to, 394-395; settlement 
of Frangois Dupont in, 399; alleged 
close connection of Brissot with, 
400 and n.; residence of Silvain 
Brissot in, 409, 410; correspondence 
in regard to speculation in the debt 
of, and in land, 431-439; mentioned, 
280 n., 291, 332, 348, 364, 372. See 
also Gallo-AmSricaine Societe, and 
Nouveau Voyage. 

Uri, 313. 

Utrecht, Peace of, 319. 

Valady, Marquis de, 184, 394 and n., 

395. 
Valaze, 321, 384, 407, 420. 
Vallots, 396. 
Vancouver Sound, 143. 
Van Staphorst, 436. 
Varennes, 168, 413. 
Vatel, 30. 
Vellay, Charles, collection of papers of 

Brissot, 67 n., 68 n., 87 n., 89 n. 
Vendee, 279, 380, 381. 
Vergennes, 13, 399. 
Vergniaud, 102, 225, 240, 247, 252-253, 

261-262, 282-293, 288, 299 and n., 

309, 333-334, 351, 382 n., 420 and 

n., 426. 
Versailles, 106 n., 115, 191, 276, 340, 

352, 354 n., 407. 
Vienna, 240, 251, 273 n., 320, 439. 
Villar, Noel, 20 and n., 21, 23. 
Villate, 383-384 and notes. 
Villefranche, 39. 
Vingtain, 32. 
Virginia, 69, 84. 
Volney, 240 n. 
Voltaire, 8, 13, 41-42, 45, 56, 146. 

War, foreign, opposition to, 229-235; 

letters from England concerning, 

439-441. See also Brissot. 
Warren, 231. 
Warville, de, 10 and n., 11, 163 n., 220, 

221 and n., 328, 431, 435, 438- 

439. 
Washington, 68 n., 69, 79-80, 97, 118, 

231. 



528 



INDEX 



Washington, Mrs., 80. 

Wethersfield, 69 n. 

Wilberforce, 183, 190 n. 

Williams, David, 25 and n., 26, 49, 

324 n. 
Williams, Helena, 382, 409 



Wilmington, 69 n. 

Yonne, 223 n., 410 and n. 

York, Duke of, 299, 300 and n., 363. 

Zurich, 313. 



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